THE 


STUDENT-LIFE    OF    GERMANY. 


THE 


STUDENT-LIFE  OF  GERMANY: 


BY  WILLIAM  HOWITT, 

AUTHOR  OF  "  THE  RURAL  LIFE  OF  ENGLAND,"  "  BOOK  OF  THE  SEASONS,"  ETC. 


FROM  THE  UNPUBLISHED  MS.  OF  DR.  CORNELIUS. 


CONTAINING  NEARLY  FORTY  OF  THE 


MOST  FAMOUS  STUDENT  SONGS. 


THINK  OFT,  YE  BRETHREN  ; 

THINK  OF  THE  GLADNESS  OF  OUR  YOUTHFUL  PRIME, 

IT  COMETH  NOT  AGAIN, THAT  GOLDEN  TIME  ! 

THE  COMMERS  BOOK. 


PHILADELPHIA: 

CAREY    AND    HART. 

MDCCCXLH. 


C.  Sherman  &  Co.  Printers,  19  St.  James  Street. 


"  How  shall  I  call  thee,  thou  high,  thou  rough,  thou  noble,  thou  barbaric, 
thou  loveable,  unharmonious,  song-full,  repelling,  yet  refreshing  life  of  the 
Burschen  years!  How  shall  I  describe  you,  ye  golden  hours,  ye  choral- 
songs  of  brotherly  love  ?  What  tone  shall  I  give  to  you  to  make  myself 
understood?  What  colours  to  thee,  thou  never-comprehended  chaos  1  I 
shall  describe  thee  7  Never !  Thy  ludicrous  outside  lies  open  ;  the  layman 
sees  that ;  one  can  describe  that  to  him ;  but  thy  inner  and  lovely  ore,  the 
miner  only  knows  who  goes  singing  with  his  brethren  into  the  deep  shaft 
He  brings  up  gold ;  pure,  solid  gold ;  be  it  much  or  little,  it  is  still  of  high 
value.  But  this  is  not  his  whole  booty.  What  he  sees  there,  he  may  not 
describe  to  the  layman :  it  were  all  too  strange,  and  too  precious  for  his 
ear.  There  are  spirits  in  the  deep  that  no  other  ear  can  comprehend ;  no 
other  eye  perceive.  Music  floats  through  those  halls,  which  to  every 
uninitiated  ear  sounds  empty  and  unmeaning.  But  to  him  who  has  felt 
with  it  and  sung  with  it,  it  gives  a  peculiar  consecration ;  when  he,  more- 
over, smiles  over  the  hole  in  his  cap  which  he  has  brought  back  with  him 
as  a  symbol. 

"  Old  Grandfather !  now  know  I  what  thou  undertook  when  thou  held 
thy  annual,  solitary,  intercalary  day !  Thou  too  hadst  thy  companions  in 
the  days  of  thy  youth,  and  the  water  stood  in  thy  gray  eyelashes  when 
thou  marked  one  in  thy  stambook  as  entombed." 

Hauft  Rathskeller  in  Bremen. 


PREFACE. 


WE  have  had  various  peeps  and  snatches  of  the  Student-life 
of  Germany,  from  time  to  time,  in  our  periodicals,  but  we  have 
nothing  like  a  complete,  and  faithful  account  of  it.  Some  of 
those  accounts  too,  are  by  English  writers,  who  had  at  best  but 
a  partial  and  passing  view  of  this  singular  state  of  existence, 
and  could  not,  however  much  they  might  have  seen  of  it,  enter 
into  it  and  comprehend  it  with  the  fulness  of  apprehension  and 
feeling  which  a  native  possesses.  When  I,  therefore,  was 
thrown,  on  my  first  visit  to  Germany,  into  the  midst  of  its 
students,  I  began  to  inquire  for  a  volume  written  by  a  German, 
which  should  lay  open  the  whole  interior  of  that,  whose  surface 
was  so  strange  and  so  picturesque.  I  was  told  that  no  such 
thing,  of  any  value  or  completeness  existed,  and  that,  indeed, 
the  students  themselves  were  jealous  of  the  laws  and  customs 
of  their  ancient  Burschendom  being  laid  open  to  the  public. 
Yet,  finding  myself  amongst  those  whose  knowledge  and 
talents  most  entirely  qualified  them  for  making  this  exposition, 
I  did  not  cease  till  I  had  prevailed  on  one  of  the  most  gifted  to 
undertake  the  task,  assisted  by  the  experience  of  friends,  who, 
like  himself,  had  passed  through  the  mysteries  of  this  singular 
life.  The  present  volume  is  the  result ;  and  I  present  it  to  the 


viii  PREFACE. 

public  with  the  confident  assurance,  that  whatever  they  may 
think  of  the  portraiture,  they  may  depend  upon  its  faithfulness. 
Spite  of  what  that  young  and  popular  writer,  Hauff,  has  left 
on  record  in  the  extract  which  immediately  precedes  these 
remarks,  we  have  now  penetrated  the  depths  of  the  Burschen- 
life;  we  have  traversed  its  chaos,  which  he  terms  a  never- 
comprehended  one ;  and  have  made  the  music  of  its  most 
hidden  halls,  audible  and  intelligible  to  all  ears.  I  do  not 
hesitate  for  a  moment  to  assert,  that,  taken  as  a  whole,  this 
volume  will  be  found  to  contain  more  that  is  entirely  new  and 
curious,  than  any  one  which  has  issued  from  the  press  for 
years.  The  institutions  and  customs  which  it  describes,  form 
the  most  singular  state  of  social  existence  to  be  found  in  the 
bosom  of  civilized  Europe  ;  and  what  renders  them  the  more 
curious  and  worthy  of  investigation  is,  that  they  are  no  recent 
and  evanescent  frolic  of  eccentricity,  but  are  as  fast  rooted  into 
the  antiquity  of  German  mind  and  manners  as  the  universities 
themselves.  They  have  been  modified  and  softened  by  time 
and  advancing  refinement,  but  are  not  a  whit  nearer  being 
rooted  out,  apparently,  than  they  were  three  hundred  years 
ago.  This  state  of  things  is  here  depicted  by  a  German 
himself,  who  has  passed  through  it;  and  with  that  peculiar 
feeling  and  appreciation  which  a  German  only  can  possess.  It 
is  in  this  light  that  they  are  to  be  regarded.  I  do  not  here 
present  myself  as  an  advocate  or  a  caviller  at  this  scheme  of 
things,  but  merely  as  a  spectator,  who,  beholding  something 
strange  and  curious,  brings  it  to  the  observation  of  his  country- 
men, in  all  truthfulness  and  simplicity  of  representation,  that 
they  may  judge  of  it  for  themselves.  It  has  been  translated 
under  the  author's  own  eye,  as  it  was  written,  and  as  he  is  also 
acquainted  with  the  English  language,  it  may  be  reasonably 
presumed  to  give  a  faithful  transcript  of  his  thoughts. 


PREFACE.  Jx 

The  two  features  of  this  Student-life  which  will  meet  with 
the  most  repugnance  in  the  English  mind,  are  the  Beer-duel, 
and  the  Sword-duel.  I  have  no  desire  to  defend,  far  less 
to  recommend  either.  I  am,  though  no  advocate  of  a  watery 
suction,  miscalled  Temperance,  neither  a  violent  wine-bibber, 
nor  "  a  fighting  character."  I  do  not  even,  like  our  worthy 
friend  Sir  Thomas  Fowell  Buxton,  while  planning  Niger  ex- 
peditions of  civilization,  brew  XXX  in  London ;  nor,  like 
many  of  my  countrymen,  while  attending  church,  or  chapel  in 
England,  insist  on  bombarding  the  Chinese  because  they  wont 
be  poisoned  with  my  opium.  I  merely  let  the  worthy  and 
learned  author  tell  his  own  tale ;  and  he,  in  telling  it  as  a 
German  and  fellow-countryman  of  those  concerned,  assures  us 
that  these  features  are  daily  becoming  more  diminished  by  the 
progress  of  refinement. 

It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  publication  of  this  volume  may 
even  hasten  this  desirable  end,  for  no  people  are  so  much  alive 
to  the  opinion  of  other  nations  as  the  Germans.  One  thing, 
however,  as  an  Englishman,  I  may  say,  which  the  author 
could  not  say — and  that  is,  that  when  reading  of  the  beer  and 
sword  duels  of  these  students,  we  must  take  into  account  what 
are  the  weapons  and  the  perils  in  both  cases.  We  are  not  to 
suppose  then,  that  their  beer  is  any  thing  like  the  XXX  just 
spoken  of,  or  their  wine  like  sherry  or  port,  three-fourths 
brandy.  No;  they  who  know  German  wine,  know  that  it  is  a 
very  gentle  and  innocent,  rather  acidulous,  and  rather  cooling 
fluid,  and  that  their  beer  is  far  more  mighty  of  the  hop  than  of 
the  malt.  It  is  a  well-bittered  and  amiable  table-beer,  which 
even  Father  Mathew  might  take  as  a  healthy  stomachic,  and 
which  one  might  rather  expect,  in  Sam  Weller's  phrase,  to 
make  its  swallowers  "  swell  wisibly  before  our  wery  eyes," 
than  grow  riotous  under  its  influence.  When  to  this  we  add, 


x  PREFACE. 

that  the  sword-duel  is  rather  a  trial  of  skill  in  fencing  than  any 
thing  dangerous,  and  that  a  scratch  across  the  cheek,  or  prick 
into  a  stuffed  jerkin,  is  in  ninety-nine  cases  out  of  a  hundred  the 
worst  of  its  accidents,  fears  on  the  subject  diminish  at  a  rapid 
rate.  If,  however,  any  one  thinks  these  youths  had  better  be  at 
their  books  than  crossing  swords  or  swallowing  choppins,  I 
assure  him  I  am  quite  of  the  same  opinion ;  and  I  here  exhort  the 
students,  as  soon  as  they  get  this  volume,  which  they  speedily 
will,  to  forsake  the  Hirschgasse  and  the  Kneip,  and  follow  the 
advice,  but  not  the  example  of  the  English.  Shall  I  advise  them 
to  imitate  the  students  of  Cambridge  ?  Let  any  one  read  "  The 
Student-Life  of  Cambridge"  in  a  late  number  of  the  Westminster 
Review,  and  say  whether  that  would  be  reasonable.  Shall  I 
advise  them  to  practise  the  vice  and  the  mockeries  which  are 
practised  there,  by  those  who  give  the  most  public  and  promi- 
nent character  to  the  social  student-life  of  England — for  it  is 
not  meant  to  assert  that  the  generality  of  the  Oxford  and  Cam- 
bridge students  are  of  such  a  class?  Why,  Kneips  and  the 
Hirschgasse  are  heaven  and  innocence  to  them.  Shall  I  advise 
them  to  quit  their  songs  for  the  grossnesses  sung  by  the  wild 
portion  of  the  students  at  Cambridge  and  Oxford  1  No !  the 
songs  of  the  German  students,  even  when  on  no  higher  a  theme 
than  wine,  and  with  the  bold  free-spokenness  which  is  startling 
to  our  modes  of  thinking,  are  the  effusions  of  the  first  spirits  of 
their  nation,  and  are  sung  to  some  of  the  finest  melodies  which 
ever  emanated  from  that  most  musical  of  people.  It  is  here 
that  the  tables  must  be  turned,  and  that  we  must  call  on  the 
English  to  imitate  the  Germans,  and  not  the  Germans  the  Eng- 
lish. If  the  English  will  drink,  let  them  drink  wine  as  cooling, 
and  beer  as  thin  and  bitter,  as  the  Germans;  if  they  will  fight 
duels,  let  them  abandon  bullets  that  fly  through  a  man  and  let 
the  soul  out  after  them,  and  be  content  with  a  scratched  nose  or 


PREFACE.  xi 

punctured  padding.     If  they  will  sing  over  their  wine,  let  them 
not  sing  the  vile  trash  that  is  heard  in  the  haunts  of  our  students, 
but  the  spiritual  effusions  of  such  writers  as  Schiller,  Goethe, 
Korner,  Arndt,  Claudius,  HaufF,  Follen,  Uhland,  etc.     No,  one 
cannot  read  of  English  students — of  their  guzzlings  and  their 
songs — without  feeling  a  sense  of  commonplaceness,  a  some- 
thing low,  gross,  unimaginative  and  vulgar.*    On  the  contrary, 
amid  all  the  follies  and  mad  frolics  and  nonsense  of  German 
student-life — of  which  God  knows  there  is  plenty — he  must  be 
destitute  of  poetry  himself  who  does  not  feel  it  there.     If  there 
be  a  man  who  can  read  through  this  volume  and  not  feel  its 
poetry,  and  not  perceive  the  high  and  beautiful  sentiment  which 
pervades  it ;  the  profound  love  of  nature,  and  the  glorious  love 
of  country, — let  that  man  march  off  to  Cambridge  or  Oxford ; 
let  him  give  his  suppers  or  his  breakfasts ;  let  him  hurry  in  his 
nightgown  to  morning  prayers ;  let  him  become  a  first-rower, 
or  a  senior-wrangler   if  he  will ;  but  that  man  is  no   more 
fit  to  take  his  stand  by  the  student  revellers  of  Germany,  than 
Caliban    is  by  Hyperion.     No,  in    the  student-life,   which   is 
entered  into  as  a  brief  season  of  youthful  hilarity,  which  in 
this  world  can  come  but  once ;  a  season  in  which  knowledge 
is  not  only  to  be  gathered,  but  life  to  be  enjoyed — friendships 
for  life  to  be  knit  up — love,  perhaps  for  life,  to  be  kindled — and 
the  spirit  of  patriotism  to  be  cherished  to  a  degree  which  no 
after-chills  and  oppressions  of  ordinary  life  shall  ever  be  able 
utterly  to  extinguish ;  in  this  life  there  is  a  feeling  and  a  senti- 
ment to  which  our  student-life  is  a  stranger.     It  is  from  the 

*  The  author  here  makes  no  charge  against  the  great  numbers  of  high-minded 
and  gentlemanly  young  men  who  pass  through,  and  confer  distinction  on,  our 
universities ;  but,  as  before  observed,  alludes  only  to  that  class  and  those  parties, 
which  are  not  only  depicted  by  the  Westminster  Review,  but  so  fully  described 
by  the  Editor  of  the  Quarterly  Review,  in  "  Reginald  Dalton." 


xii  PREFACE. 

bosom  of  this  life  that  some  of  the  noblest  poets,  the  profoundest 
philosophers,  and  the  most  devoted  patriots  which  the  world 
ever  saw,  have  gone  forth.  It  was  from  the  heart  of  this  life 
that  Theodore  Korner  sprung,  for  the  cause  of  his  country  and 
mankind,  and  sung  and  fought  and  died ;  it  was  from  this  that 
Goethe  and  Schiller,  Hauff  and  Tieck,  and  a  thousand  others, 
have  issued  to  glorify  valour,  or  consecrate  patriotism,  or  beau- 
tify the  regions  of  the  human  soul  by  their  songs  and  their  ima- 
ginative prose.  It  was  from  this  that  the  whole  body  of  ardent 
youth  arose,  and  quitting  their  Kneips  and  their  Chores,  called 
all  their  country  to  reassert  its  liberty,  to  drive  out  its  foes,  and 
at  the  people's  head,  fought  with  the  spirit  of  the  ancient  heroes, 
and  chased  from  their  soil  for  ever,  the  tyrant  and  overrunner 
of  humbled  Europe. 

And  yet  there  are  those  who  are  continually  forgetting  these 
things;  asserting  that  all  the  student  songs,  and  student  clan- 
ship, and  student  freedom,  end  in  smoke  and  vapour,  and 
without  any  permanent  result,  and  that  they  depart  at  the 
termination  of  their  academical  career  their  several  ways, 
and  sink  into  obscurity  and  insignificance.  What !  would  they 
not  have  them  become  good  citizens,  sober  judges,  domestic 
men?  But  they  who  say  that  no  high  effects  remain,  know 
nothing  of  the  youth  of  Germany.  They  cannot  have  seen 
how  the  new  Rhine-song  went  through  the  whole  country  like 
an  electric  flash  when  France  threatened  to  march  to  the  banks 
of  that  noble  r.ver,  and  how  every  German  student  vowed 
if  such  a  deed  were  perpetrated,  they  would  go  forth  and 
fight  to  a  man.  They  cannot  know,  as  I  do,  that  the  loves 
and  friendships  formed  by  these  youths  are  more  permanent 
and  indissoluble  than  any  class  of  men  with  whom  I  have 
yet  become  acquainted ;  nor  that  in  private  society,  where, 
and  in  my  own  house,  I  have  seen  much  of  them,  they  are 


PREFACE.  xiij 

amongst  the  most  accomplished,  gentlemanly,  temperate,  cor- 
rectly-mannered, cordial-hearted,  and  intellectual  men  that 
European  society  possesses.  But  all  such  persons  I  willingly 
turn  over  to  the  perusal  of  this  volume,  the  work  of  a  young 
but  learned  author,  who  has  recently  passed,  by  a  splendid 
examination,  out  of  this  student-life  itself  without  having  ever 
fought  a  single  duel,  or  very  probably  got  half  or  even  quarter 
seas  over.  If  the  perusal  of  this  volume  should  have  the  good 
effect  of  lessening  amongst  the  German  youth  the  tendency 
to  the  beer  or  the  sword  duel,  and  of  inspiring  our  English 
youth  with  a  more  intellectual  and  poetical  taste  in  their 
pleasures,  certainly  we  may  say,  in  the  style  of  all  good  old 
prefaces,  "  that  it  will  not  have  been  written  in  vain." 

Heidelberg,  April  6th,  1841. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

GENERAL  PLAN,  OFFICERS,  AND  COURTS,  OF  A  GERMAN  UNIVERSITY — 
Charm  of  this  life  to  those  who  have  passed  through  it — Explanation 
of  the  term  Bursche,  or  Student — Right  to  found  or  dissolve  Univer- 
sities, retained  by  the  Sovereign  Princes — Offices  and  mode  of  go- 
vernment— The  Curatorium — Rector,  Prorector — Senate,  greater  and 
Jess — Different  orders  of  Professors  and  Teachers — mode  of  their 
remuneration — University  Board  of  Finance — its  Court  of  Justice — 
Academical  freedom,  and  mode  of  matriculation — Inferior  officers, 
and  penalties  for  offences  against  the  Academical  laws — College  terms 
— mode  of  Lecturing,  and  duties  of  Lecturers — necessary  Examina- 
tions of  the  Students,  and  consequent  Certificates — Sciences  taught 
— Privileges  and  endowments  to  enable  young  men  without  property 
to  enjoy  all  the  advantages  of  the  Universities — the  great  extent  to 
which  this  is  made  available,  and  great  advantages  to  the  State  de- 
rived from  it — Opinion  of  Goethe  0.1  this  head — Great  Men  that  this 
has  produced — no  German,  however  exalted  in  rank,  can  hold  a  high 
position  in  society,  without  making  himself  master  of  the  knowledge 
thus  opened  to  the  people  -----  25 

CHAPTER  II. 

GENERAL  VIEW  OF  STUDENT-LIFE. — Student-life  an  admirable  field  for 
bringing  a  young  man  speedily  to  a  knowledge  of  life,  and  to  a  sense  of 
self-government  and  self-dependence — Prejudice,  especially  amongst 
foreigners,  that  Students  must  become  exposed  to  many  unpleasant- 
nesses— these  groundless— every  individual  Student  independent,  and 


Xvi  CONTENTS. 

at  liberty  to  associate  just  as  little,  or  as  much  as  he  pleases  with  the 
rest — Equality  the  law  of  the  German  Students — their  opinion  that 
the  English  are  the  slaves  of  the  Aristocracy — their  surprise  at  the 
Aristocratic  prejudices  of  the  English — Academic  freedom  dear  to 
every  German  Student — its  value  acknowledged  by  all  the  greatest 
men — Influence  of  the  associate  life  of  the  Students  on  their  minds 
and  manners — including,  as  it  does,  the  natives  of  so  many  Countries 
—  Chores,  or  Unions  —  Landsmannschafls  —  the  Burschenschafl — 
Wearing  of  Union  Badges  forbidden — Public  Processions,  and  Cos- 
tumes of  the  Professors  .....  41 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  CHORES,  OR  UNIONS. — Their  nature,  constitution,  and  distinguish- 
ing colours — each  Chore  formed  of  the  natives  of  a  particular  State 
— what  is  requisite  for  the  formation  of  a  New  Chore — is  acknow- 
ledged and  recorded  at  the  Allgemaine,  or  General  Social  Meeting 
of  the  Chores — Constitution  of  a  Chore — its  Officers,  Code  of  Laws — 
its  Beer-court,  and  Court  of  Honour — its  Boon-companions,  and  various 
ranks  of  members — its  Chore-Convent,  or  Board  of  Administration — 
the  Proscription,  or  Bann,  as  exercised  both  against  Members  and 
offending  Tradesmen,  or  even  the  University  itself— Classes  of  Stu- 
dents termed  Camels,  etc.  etc.  -  -  -  -  -  49 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT. — The  origin  of  this  celebrated  Society  to  be 
found  in  the  patriotic  desire  to  free  Germany  from  the  domination  of 
Buonaparte — this  feeling  at  first  high  and  holy — quickened  by  the 
union  of  Learned  and  Literary  men  in  the  Poet- League  of  Gottengen, 
to  advance  the  Language  and  Literature  of  the  Country — the  tri- 
umphs of  Literature  at  their  height  under  Schiller  and  Goethe,  when 
the  French  Invasion  took  place — the  indignant  enthusiasm  excited  by 
this  on  the  minds  of  the  Students — the  formation  of  Burschenschafts 
— these  in  different  Universities  united  by  one  general  bond — their 
effect  in  rousing  Germany  to  the  expulsion  of  the  French — these 
feelings  immortalized  in  the  songs  of  Theodore  Korner — the  People's 
Battle  at  Leipsic — the  expulsion  of  the  French  followed  by  a  demand 
for  the  restoration  of  the  Germanic  Empire — Act  of  Confederation  of 
the  German  States  signed — Formation  of  the  Holy  Alliance  of 
Sovereigns — Disappointment  of  the  People — Agitations  of  the  Bur- 
schenschafl— Beautiful  ceremonies  at  the  celebration  of  the  Peace 


CONTENTS.  xvjj 

Anniversary  at  Jena,  etc.  1816 — further  proceedings  of  the  Bur- 
schenschaft — the  celebrated  Festival  in  the  Wartburg  in  1817,  at 
which  the  Writings  of  Kotzebue  were  burnt — Congress  of  Universi- 
ties at  Jena  in  1818,  and  Publication  of  the  Constitution  of  the 
Burschenschafl — the  influence  of  these  events  on  the  mind  of  George 
Sand,  and  its  consequences  -  -  -  -  -  58 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  NARRATIVE  OF  SAND. — His  origin  and  education — his  early  enmity 
to  the  French — his  conscientious  but  excitable  disposition — the  effect 
on  his  mind  of  the  burning  of  Kotzebue's  Writings — his  personal 
appearance — Kotzebue  in  the  pay  of  Russia,  to  give  information  of 
the  popular  movements  and  opinions  in  Germany — Seizure  and  publi- 
cation of  one  of  his  bulletins  to  that  Government,  and  consequent 
popular  excitement — Sand  conceives  the  idea  of  putting  Kotzebue  to 
death,  as  a  traitor  to  German  freedom — his  long  mental  struggles 
against  this  idea — the  final  surrender  to  it,  and  preparation  for  carry- 
ing it  into  effect — his  paper  called  "Death-blow  to  August  Von  Kot- 
zebue"— his  letter  to  his  parents,  and  brother  and  sisters,  on  setting 
out  on  this  project — his  perpetration  of  the  deed,  his  trial,  and  execu- 
tion at  Mannheim — Consequence  of  this  and  similar  attempts — The 
prohibition  of  the  Burschenschaft,  and  persecution  of  its  members— 
The  Song  "  We  Builded,"  etc.,  as  sung  at  the  breaking  up  of  the 
Burschenschaft  in  June  in  1819  -  -  -  -  -  79 


CHAPTER  VI. 

CEREMONIAL  INTRODUCTIONS  TO  UNIVERSITY  AND  BDRSCHEN  LIFE. — 
The  Student  youth  of  Germany,  driven  from  the  Burschenschaft, 
have  fallen  back  on  their  Chore-life — Complaints  of  late  years  that 
youths  coming  to  the  University  become  involved  in  the  dissipations 
of  Chore-life,  to  the  prevention  of  their  studies  and  detriment  of 
health  and  morals — these  views  combated  by  the  Author — the  exis- 
tence of  a  temporary  excitement  on  entering  University-life  ac- 
counted for — the  Author,  as  one  who  passed  through  this  life,  testifies 
to  its  advantages — Every  University  its  own  particular  tone  and  cha- 
racter— Peep  at  the  past  Life  of  the  Universities,  as  revealed  in 
Zaccharise's  "  Renommist,"  and  in  a  Drawing  of  1730 — Singular  and 
rude  Customs  formerly  practised  on  the  admission  of  Students  to  the 
Universities — Freshmen  or  Branen,  then  subjected  also  to  many  hu- 
miliations— the  present  condition  of  the  Freshman,  now  termed  a  Fox 

2* 


xviii  CONTENTS. 

— Curious  Anecdotes  connected  with  the  condition  of  a  Fox — Different 
ranks  which  a  Student  passes  through  who  joins  a  Chore,  or  Verbin- 
dung — in  the  Gymnasium,  or  school  preparatory  to  the  University,  he 
is  a  Frog — then  successively  a  Mule,  a  Camel,  a  Fox,  a  Fat-Fox,  a 
Burnt-Fox,  a  Young  Bursch,  Old  Bursch,  and  Mossy  Head — Satirical 
explanation  of  Student  terms,  by  Herr  Schluck — Initiatory  ceremo- 
nies at  a  Union  of  the  Chores  on  creating  the  different  degrees  of 
Foxes — Singing  of  "  The  Landsfather" — The  Fox-Ride,  and  its  ac- 
companying song — Burning  of  the  Burnt-Foxes,  with  the  accom- 
panying song,  etc.  -  -  -  -  -  -  -113 

CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  DUEL. — This  is  a  practice  of  the  Middle  Ages,  that  has  firmly 
maintained  itself  amongst  the  Students — the  Author's  opinion  of  it — 
its  actual  good  or  evil  in  the  system — to  be  regarded  principally  as  a 
trial  of  skill  in  fence — mode  in  which  these  Duels  are  contracted, 
settled,  conducted,  and  fought  out — At  Heidelberg  these  take  place 
in  a  well-known  house  in  the  Hirschgasse — Duel  Costume,  and  dif- 
ferent species  of  Duel — Anecdote  of  a  little  Jew  who  fought  one — the 
Duel  prohibited  by  the  laws — the  Academical  enactments  against  it 
— Attempts  of  the  Beadles  to  seize  the  Combatants — their  watchers 
— the  Red  Fisherman,  their  great  champion — Students'  dogs  some- 
times join  in  the  contest — Penalties,  and  University  Prison  -  -  134 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

CHARACTERS  CONNECTING  THEMSELVES  WITH  STUDENT  LIFE. — The 
Hofrath  Diehl — his  History — the  Flower-Boy,  and  Frau  Gotlieben 
the  Fruitwoman  .......  154. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

PRIVATE  LIFE  OF  THE  STUDENT. — Visit  of  Mr.  Traveller,  the  English- 
man, to  the  room  of  the  Student  Freisleben — his  surprise  at  what  he 
saw — his  friendly  welcome — Description  of  the  Room  and  its  various 
Decorations — Student  word  for  comfortable — the  Boot -Fox — Origin 
of  the  word  School  Foxery,  or  pedantry — Wages  of  a  Boot-Fox — 
Expense  of  Living  at  the  University — Pendulums  and  Knoten — 
origin  of  the  latter  term — the  House  Philistine  and  his  duties — the 
Philose,  the  Besom,  the  House-Bursch,  and  Room-Bursch — What  it 
means  to  "  Tail  a  Lecture" — Dissertation  on  Dogs — A  visit  to  the 


CONTENTS.  xjx 

annual  Dog-Muster — Students'  Dogs — their  characteristics — one  at 
a  duel  swallows  up  a  Student's  nose — the  little  Dog  Tambour! i — the 
Student's  love  for  his  Pipe — Pipes  of  various  kinds,  and  in  all  their 
parts,  described — Origin  of  the  word  Fidibus — the  philosophy  of 
Smoking  ........  102 


CHAPTER  X. 

RURAL  AND  SUMMER  AMUSEMENTS  OF  THE  STUDENT. — Beauties  of  the 
neighbourhood  of  Heidelberg — The  Wolfsbrunnen — the  surrounding 
Woods  and  Mountains  of  the  Odenwald  and  Black  Forest — Historical 
associations — the  Student  sometimes  takes  longer  excursions  than 
into  these  scenes — Excursions  in  a  one-engine — Water  excursions — 
Field  sports — The  Students'  Shooting  ground — Kirschweihs,  or 
Wakes,  described — the  Students  there — Scenes  which  arise  with  the 
Handwerksburschen  -  -  -  -  - .  -  186 


CHAPTER  XL 

WINTER  AMUSEMENTS  OF  THE  STUDENT. — He  joins  gladly  Social  Parties 
at  the  houses  of  the  Inhabitants  and  of  the  English — finds  much 
amusement  at  the  Reading-rooms,  Billiard-table,  and  Balls  and  Con- 
certs at  the  Museum — Serenades — Song, "  The  Departure" — Skating 
— pushing  Ladies  on  the  Ice  in  Sledges — gaiety  of  these  scenes — sledg- 
ing parties  by  Torch-light — Whims  of  the  Students  on  such  occasions 
— Instances  of  their  schemes  to  satirize  the  attempts  of  the  Senate  to 
check  their  expense  in  such  things — in  the  evening  joins  his  Kneip  -  198 

CHAPTER  XII. 

THE  STUDENT'S  EVENING  PARTY,  WITH  ITS  CONVERSATIONS,  DISCUS- 
SIONS, SONGS,  AND  CUSTOMS. — The  Student  Hoffman  entertains  his 
Friends — Description  of  his  Rooms — his  Friends  Freisleben,  Von 
Kronen,  Eckhard,  Enderlin,  Pittschaft,  Mr.  Traveller — their  opinion 
of  Englishmen  and  English  Ladies — Melancholy  story  of  Krusenstern 
and  Avensleben — The  Radonen  Cake — Sketch  of  the  history  of  Uni- 
versities, given  by  Von  Kronen — Discussion  on  Phrenology — English 
and  German  Literature  compared — German  Romance  ludicrously 
described  by  Lichtenberg — the  Students  sing  Schiller's  song  of  "  The 
Four  Elements,"  also  "  There  Twinkle  Three  Stars"  from  Korner — 
they  sing  a  Roundelay — Anecdotes  of  Stambooks — Drink  to  their 
Ladies — Drink  and  sing  as  a  Roundelay  the  humorous  song  of  "  The 
Krahwinkle  Landsturni" — sing  a  Lumpitus  of  the  first  verse  of  various 


xx  CONTENTS. 

celebrated  songs  in  rotation — sing  "  The  Binschgauer" — Merriments 
before  parting — The  songs  of  "  Ye  Brothers,  when  no  more  I'm  drink- 
ing," "The  Pope,"  "Brothers,  in  this  Place  of  Festive  Meeting," 
"  So  crown  with  leaves  the  love-o'erbrimming  Beakers"  -  209 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

GENERAL  SYSTEM  OF  GERMAN  EDUCATION. — Glance  at  the  progress  of 
popular  Education,  from  the  ancient  Nations  and  Times  down  to  the 
present — Popular  Folks'-schools  of  the  Middle  Ages — Gerhardus- 
Magnus — his  Institution  at  Deventer — his  ideas  followed  out  by 
Montaigne,  Bacon,  etc. — the  Burger  class  erect  Schools— the  Refor- 
mation— School  of  Conrad  Celtes,  for  the  restoration  of  Classical 
antiquity — Services  of  Erasmus,  Reuchlin,  Dalberg,  Agricola,  Pirk- 
heimer,  etc. — the  origin  of  the  plans  of  Pestalozzi  to  be  found  in  the 
writings  of  Ratich  and  Comenius — Services  of  Fenelon,  Spencer,  and 
Franke — Improvements  by  Ziedler,  Hein,  and  Sulzer — Influence  of 
Locke,  Rousseau,  Crousatz,  in  developing  the  modern  School-systems 
— Description  of  the  German  School-system,  and  what  is  taught  in 
each  class  of  Schools,  viz.  the  ELEMENTARY,  or  PROPER  FOLKS'- 
SCHOOLS  ;  the  REAL  SCHOOLS,  called  also  MIDDLE  SCHOOLS,  HIGHER 
BURGER  SCHOOLS,  etc. ;  the  GYMNASIA  ;  the  UNIVERSITIES  -  -  253 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

SONG,  AN  INDISPENSABLE  REQUISITE  TO  THE  STUDENT,  AS  TO  ALL  GER- 
MANS.— Song  and  Poetry  a  necessity  to  the  German — the  Germans 
rich  in  Popular  Songs — Universal  singing  of  the  Common,  People — 
A  popular  Song  at  any  crisis  passes  like  an  electric  flash  through  the 
whole  People — "  Prince  Eugene,"  a  specimen  of  a  class  of  Songs 
very  common  amongst  the  People — All  classes,  in  town  or  country, 
have  their  peculiar  Songs — the  Student  is  affluent  in  Songs — the 
Commers-Book  a  collection  of  them — Sing  in  their  Kneips — their 
Songs  often  heard  on  summer  evenings  in  the  open  air  with  fine 
effect — one  of  the  finest  "  From  High  Olympus,"  etc. — the  Rounde- 
lay— the  Student  has  his  Songs  of  Love,  Wine,  Fatherland,  and 
Friendship — Student-life  regarded  as  a  joyous  season  that  comes  but 
once,  therefore  they  sing  and  rejoice  in  it — Accompany  their  De- 
ceased Brethren  to  the  tomb  also  with  Song — "  Gaudeamus  igitur"  -  272 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

DRINKING  CUSTOMS  OF  STUDENT-LIFE,  ANCIENT  AND  MODERN. — The 
Author's  opinions  on  festive  drinking — Song  of  Old  Noah — Master 
Schluck's  persiflage  on  the  Burschen-Comment,  or  Student  Code  of 
Drinking  Laws — Notice  of  some  of  the  chief  of  the  different  classes 
of  Student  Songs — "  The  Maiden  Song"  as  formerly  sung — account 
of  it  in  Zaccharise's  Renommist — Drinking  Customs  of  a  past  age  in 
the  Universities — anecdotes  of  these — Phrases  collected  by  Lichten- 
berg  descriptive  of  a  Drunkard — the  General  Beer-Code  of  Heidel- 
berg -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  285 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE  COMMERS. — The  Commerses,  general  and  special — their  social 
Festive  Meetings,  held  on  various  occasions — Description  of  the 
General  Commers — certain  Songs  sung,  as  "Heidelberg  live  thou," 
etc. — the  Singing  of  "  The  Consecration  Song,  or  Landsfather,"  and 
singular  ceremonies  attending  it — the  Ceremony  of  the  SMOLLIS — 
Smollering  constitutes  a  Brotherhood  to  last  for  life — Drinking  Laws 
of  the  Commers — Herr  Schluck's  Comments  on  a  Commers — the  Ex- 
cesses of  the  Ancient  Commerses  abandoned  ...  298 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE  SPECIAL  COMMERS. — Description  of  a  train  of  Students  going  out 
to  a  Special  Commers  in  the  country — their  arrival  there — descrip- 
tion of  the  Room  and  mode  of  holding  the  Commers — Ceremony,  and 
Song  of  "  The  Prince  of  Fooling" — Frolics  and  Gambols  of  the  Stu- 
dents the  next  day  in  the  village — An  old  ballad  describing  these  in 
1650 — the  Commers  over,  they  return  often  by  water,  with  music 
and  fireworks — close  it  with  drinking  Crambambuli — the  Song  of 
Crambambuli— The  Lumpin  Bell  .....  310 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

NEW  YEAR'S  EVE. — Spent  by  the  Friends  at  the  rooms  of  Freisleben — 
Conversation  sallies — Glee-wine  made,  and  the  English  song,  "Down 
with  the  Sorrows,"  etc.,  by  Mrs.  Howitt,  sung  by  Hoffmann  to  the 
guitar—"  The  Song  of  Wine"—"  The  Table-Song,"  by  Goethe  -  319 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

NEW  YEAR'S  EVE,  CONTINUED. — Sketch  of  the  History  of  Heidelberg 
University — a  Salamander  rubbed  to  the  honour  of  the  Professors     -  328 


CHAPTER  XX. 

NEW  YEAR'S  EVE,  CONTINUED. — University  Stories — Singular  Story  of 
the  feats  of  activity,  strength,  and  eccentric  humour  of  Von  Plauen — 
his  Banishment  from  the  University — his  Imprisonment  and  Escape 
— Story  of  the  Student  Schvvartzkopf,  who  became  the  celebrated 
robber,  "  The  Black  Peter ;"  with  his  deeds,  capture,  and  strange 
final  escape — Story  of  the  Student  Stark — Fire-arms  announce  the 
entrance  of  the  New  Year,  and  the  friends  rush  forth  to  witness  the 
Procession  of  the  Students  to  give  a  "  Vivat"  to  their  chief  Profes- 
sors— this  described — Breaking  up  of  the  ice  on  the  river — the  ex- 
ploit of  the  Red  Fisherman  -  -  335 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

THE  MARCHING-FORTH. — Modes  in  which  the  Student  generally  quits 
the  University — The  Marching-Forth  when  the  Bann  is  laid  by  the 
Students  on  the  University  itself,  and  march  forth  in  a  body — various 
instances  of  this — the  one  which  arose  out  of  the  building  of  the 
Museum  in  Heidelberg  in  1827 — the  cry  of  "  Bursch,  come  forth !" 
raised,  and  all  the  Students,  in  procession,  quitted  the  city — the  pro- 
gress of  negotiation  and  return  of  the  Students — Marching-Forth 
from  Heidelberg  on  account  of  dispute  with  the  Military — Marching- 
Forth  from  Gottingen  in  1818 — progress  and  event  of  it — Anecdote 
of  a  Student  and  an  Actor  at  Darmstadt — Noble  instance  of  the  cry 
of  "Bursch,  come  forth!"  being  raised  for  the  defence  of  the  Jews — 
used  in  case  of  fires — in  defence  of  the  Prussian  Students — Debts  of 
the  Students — their  vengeance  on  an  offending  Tailor — the  Mani- 
chffians  or  creditors — Mr.  Traveller  quits  Heidelberg — Scene  at  his 
Rooms — Accompanied  by  his  Friends  to  Weinheim — Meeting  with 
a  pedestrian  party  of  Students  from  Wertzburg — As  Mr.  Traveller 
departs  they  sing,  "A  Mossy  Bursch  now  forth  I  wend"  -  -  374 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

THE  STUDENT'S  FUNERAL,  ETC. — Hazards  supposed  to  attend  Student- 
life  considered — Termination  of  the  Student  career  by  death — No 


CONTENTS. 

class  of  persons  so  poetically  testify  their  respect  and  affection  for 
their  deceased  friends  as  the  Students — Description  of  the  whole 
Pageant  and  Procession  of  a  Student's  Funeral — with  the  final  burn- 
ing of  the  torches  before  the  University,  and  singing  of  the  "Gaudea- 
mus  igitur" — Funeral  honours  paid  to  a  Professor  ...  393 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

THE  COMITAT,  or  accompaniment  of  a  Student  in  procession  on  his 
quitting  the  University — Hard  study  of  the  Student  as  the  day  of 
Examination  approaches — Degrees  obtained — Description  of  the  Co- 
mitat  procession  of  his  Friends,  as  formerly  practised  ajid  as  at  pre- 
sent— they  sing  the  song  of  "  The  Mossy  Bursch"  at  parting — Ballad 
of'TheOldBursch"  -  -  "  -  -  -  -402 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

Summary  of  the  actual  merits  and  demerits  of  German  Student-life — 
Arguments  of  Professor  Ringseis  against  Duelling    -  407 


CHAPTER  XXV. 
A  Review  of  the  Political  Aspect  of  Student-life         -  -  428 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 

A  parting  glance  at  other  Universities,  German  and  Foreign   -  -  434 


The  General  Beer-Comment  of  Heidelberg      -  -  -  -  441 


LIST    OF    GERMAN    SONGS. 

TRANSLATED  INTO  ENGLISH. 


1.  The  Sword  Song 

2.  The  German  Fatherland 

3.  The  Union  Song 

4.  Are  German  .Hearts  ... 

5.  We  Builded  Ourselves    -  -        '*  -  •• 
.6.  The  Fox-Ride 

7.  Free  is  the  Bursch          - 

8.  The  Wirthin's  Daughter 

9.  God  greet  Thee,  Brother  Straubinger     -  - 

10.  True  Love     - 

11.  The  Departure    - 

12.  The  Gallant  Ship  is  going    -  -  206 

13.  The  Four  Elements         -  -  -      240 

14.  There  Twinkle  Three  Stars 

15.  Roundelay  .-  -      241 

16.  The  Krahwinkler  Landsturm  243 

17.  The  Binschgauer's  Pilgrimage    -  -     246 
16.  Drinking  Song          -  248 

19.  The  Pope  -     249 

20.  Drinking  Song  -  -  -  250 

21.  Rhine-Wine        -  -     251 

22.  Prince  Eugene          .....  275 

23.  Commers  Song    -  -  -      279 

24.  An  Unbounded  Jollity  -  281 

25.  Gaudeamus  Igitur  _.----     283 

26.  Old  Noah      -  ...  287 

27.  Old-fashioned  Bursch       -  ...  -     290 

28.  The  Travel  Song      ....  -  299 

29.  The  Landsfather  -  -  -     301 

30.  Prince  of  Fools  •  313 

31.  Ways  of  the  Students     -  -  -     314 

32.  Crambambuli  ....  316 

33.  Song  of  Wine     ...  -     324 

34.  The  Departing  Bursch  -  391 

35.  The  Old  Bursch  -  -  -  -  -     405 


THE 


STUDENT  LIFE  OF  GERMANY. 


CHAPTER  I. 


GENERAL  PLAN,  OFFICERS  AND  COURTS,  OF  A.  GERMAN  UNIVERSITY. 

Jerusalem  beautifully  observes,  that  the  barbarism  which  often  springs  up  be- 
hind the  loveliest  and  most  richly-coloured  flower  of  knowledge,  may  be  a  kind  of 
strengthening  mud-bath,  to  prevent  the  over- delicacy  which  threatens  the  flower ; 
and  I  fancy  that  one  who  reflects  how  far  knowledge  usually  climbs  in  a  student, 
will  allow  the  so-called  Burschen  life  to  the  Sons  of  the  Muses,  as  a  kind  of  bar- 
barous Middle-age,  which  may  so  far  fortify  them  as  to  prevent  this  delicacy  of 
refinement  exceeding  its  due  bounds. — Jean  Paul  Richter's  Quintus  Fictislein. 

STUDENT  LIFE  !  BURSCHEN  LIFE  !  What  a  magic  sound  have 
these  words  for  him  who  has  learnt  for  himself  their  real  mean- 
ing !  What  a  swarm  of  recollections  come  over  him  who  has 
once  visited  that  land,  however  long  it  may  be  since  he  returned 
homeward  to  a  safer  haven !  Youth  flies  on  wings  of  impa- 
tience towards  this  happy  time;  age,  though  indeed  it  may 
smile  over  the  recollection  of  many  a  folly,  recalls  its  memory 
with  delight. 

We  hear  two  old  men,  who  in  later  life  recognise  each  other 
in  civil  office,  and  loaded  with  honourable  duties.  They  speak 
of  those  beautiful  dreams  of  youth  with  enthusiasm,  like  two  old 

3 


26  GERMAN  UNIVERSITIES. 

veterans  rejoicing  themselves  in  the  recollections  of  the  cam- 
paigns in  which  they  have  served,  and  the  battles  which  they 
have  fought  together.  "  To  the  old  times !"  cry  they,  touching 
their  glasses  together,  filled  with  noble  Rhein  wine,  and  with 
their  joy  sorrowfully  mingles  itself  the  memory  of  the  many 
companions  of  those  times,  who  have  already  quitted  this  life ; 
for  it  is  a  fine  characteristic  of  the  heart  of  man,  that  while 
enjoying  the  highest  happiness  of  the  present,  or  when  joyfully 
calling  to  remembrance  that  once  enjoyed,  in  such  moments  it 
feels  most  painfully  the  absence  of  distant  friends. 

The  stranger  who  should  hear  the  conversation  of  these  old 
gentlemen ;  as  he  saw  how  they  became  young  again  in  spirit, 
and  how  their  forms,  bent  with  years,  they  raised  again  erect  as 
they  conversed,  would  gladly  linger  near  them,  and  would  cer- 
tainly say,  "  Those  must  indeed  have  been  delightful  times !" 

Yes,  they  were — and  they  are,  for  those  who  know  how  to 
enjoy  them.  Stranger,  thou  who  hast  never  known  this  beauti- 
ful life ;  and  thou  who  wouldst  willingly  experience  more  of  it, 
— to  you  hope  we  to  be  able  to  reveal  many  an  attractive 
feature,  and  you  shall  behold  many  a  scene,  as  we  venture  to 
predict,  snatched  fresh  and  living  from  the  heart  of  this  existence. 
Follow  us  into  the  City  of  the  Muses — to  the  strife-place  of  this 
passion-driven  life;  there  will  we  teach  thee  more  nearly  to 
observe  the  peculiar  constitution  of  this  student  state,  and  the 
habits  of  its  citizens,  which  thou  hast  perhaps  observed  many  a 
time  with  amazement.  Many  a  foreigner  has  even  probably 
been  for  a  short  period  a  citizen  of  this  state,  without  having 
penetrated  deeply  into  its  constitution  and  all  its  peculiarities. 
To  him  also  will  these  pages  afford  information  and  entertain- 
ment, 

Plunge  boldly  into  actual  human  life, — 
Every  man  lives  it;  few  men  know  it  well ; 
And  where  you  seize  it,  there  you  make  it  tell. 

Prologue  to  Goethe's  Faust. 

We  have  here  in  the  very  outset  used  the  expressions 
"  student"  and  "  bursche,"  and  shall  find  ourselves  necessitated 


OFFICERS  AND  COURTS.  27 

still  oftener  to  use  them ;  we  will,  therefore,  at  once  give  a  few 
sentences  in  explanation  of  their  meaning.  By  student,  we 
understand  one  who  has  by  matriculation  acquired  the  rights  of 
academical  citizenship;  but,  by  bursche",  we  understand  one 
who  has  already  spent  a  certain  time  at  the  university — and 
who,  to  a  certain  degree,  has  taken  part  in  the  social  practices 
of  the  students.  How  and  when  he  acquires  a  real  claim  to 
this  title,  we  shall  hereafter  have  occasion  to  show.  We  will 
here  only  make  one  observation  regarding  the  origin  of  this 
term. 

In  order  to  render  a  university  education  available  to  men  of 
little  or  no  property,  in  the  twelfth  century  colleges  were 
founded,  where  poor  youths  received  free  lodging,  maintenance, 
and  money,  and  lived  under  the  strict  superintendence  of  one 
or  more  teachers.  This  became  extensively  the  case  in  the 
thirteenth  century,  and  still  more  general  in  the  fourteenth. 
Private  persons  of  wealth  were  mostly  the  benefactors,  when 
such  institutions  were  founded  and  endowed.  In  Germany  such 
colleges  were  called  bursen,  whence  comes  the  term  bursche. 
This  name,  given  at  that  time  to  such  as  dwelt  together  in  such 
a  burse,  was,  at  a  later  period,  restricted  to  those  only  who  had 
for  a  longer  time  taken  a  more  immediate  part  in  the  associate 
life  of  the  students.  The  signification  of  the  terms — student 
life,  burschen  life — thence  derived,  is  plain  enough  of  percep- 
tion. Before,  however,  we  conduct  the  reader  into  this  bur- 
schen life,  in  order  to  give  him  a  clearer  understanding  of  it,  we 
will  say  a  few  words  on  the  constitution  of  universities ;  on  the 
surveillance  which  the  state  exercises  over  them,  and  on  the 
relation  of  teachers  and  university  officers  to  the  students. 

The  right  to  found  universities — to  dissolve  them  again — to 
unite  them  with  others,  and  so  on — belongs  at  the  present  time 
only  to  the  respective  sovereign  princes,  who  have  held  these 
prerogatives  from  the  dissolution  of  the  German  empire.  Prior 
to  this,  they  centred  in  the  Emperor,  and  before  the  Reforma- 
tion, in  the  Pope.  The  universities  stand  under  the  particular 
protection  of  the  state,  which  superintends  and  conducts  them 
by  jurisdiction  thereunto  especially  organized.  The  interests 


28  GERMAN  UNIVERSITIES. 

of  the  universities  are  protected  by  a  representative  in  the 
Landtag,  the  second  chamber  of  the  state.  Should  a  university 
have  causes  of  complaint  against  the  prince,  it  must  appeal 
to  the  Bundestag,  that  is,  the  court  established  between  the 
different  German  states,  to  decide  all  questions  between  those 
states,  or  between  the  prince  and  people  of  any  one  of  them. 

At  the  head  of  a  German  university  stands  the  rector,  or 
more  commonly,  the  prorector,  since  the  rectorate  is  generally 
retained  by  the  sovereign  princes  in  their  own  hands,  as  is  the 
case  in  Baden.  With  the  rector  or  prorector  is  associated  the 
Academical  Senate,  as  a  permanent  court  of  administration. 
The  prorector  is  annually  chosen  at  Easter,  by  the  Great 
Senate,  out  of  the  body  of  professors.  He  is  then  proposed  to 
the  curator,  formerly  termed  throughout  Germany,  the  chan- 
cellor, and  still  so  styled  in  Wirtemberg.  On  the  motion  of 
this  officer,  he  is  confirmed  by  the  prince.  His  duty  is  to  pro- 
mote, as  far  as  in  him  lies,  the  prosperity  and  object  of  the 
High  School  generally,  and  especially  the  moral  and  literary 
education  of  the  students ;  the  enforcement  of  the  academical 
laws  and  statutes ;  and  to  watch  over  the  official  proceedings 
of  the  curatorship,  and  the  resolutions  of  the  Senate.  He  thus 
presides  over  the  Great,  and  Select  or  Lesser  Senate,  where  he 
also  exercises  the  right  of  proposition ;  opens  all  propositions  or 
memorials ;  collects  the  votes ;  and,  according  to  the  majority, 
decides.  He  is  entitled  to  be  present  at  the  assembly  of  the 
Ephorats.  At  the  expiration  of  his  prorectorate,  he  continues 
in  the  senate  a  year,  where,  in  the  absence  of  the  prorector,  he 
occupies  his  place. 

The  Senate  is  divided  into  the  Select  and  Great  Senate. 
The  first  consists  of  the  prorector,  the  ex-prorector,  and  four 
ordinary  professors,  each  section  furnishing  one.  At  the  end 
of  every  half-year  three  members  go  out.  Their  successors 
are  appointed  from  the  curatorium — the  office  of  the  curator. 
The  period  of  office  is  for  a  year.  The  Select  Senate  corre- 
sponds with  the  curatorium,  and  it  is  the  business  of  the 
prorector  to  lay  before  this  body  all  current  communications 
from  the  curatorium:  in  ordinary  cases,  at  its  ordinary  sittings; 


OFFICERS  AND  COURTS.  29 

or  in  emergencies,  at  extraordinary  ones.  The  Select  Senate 
lays  before  the  Great  Senate  all  such  concerns  as  have  been 
brought  under  its  own  consideration,  or  such  as  at  least  two- 
thirds  of  its  members  shall  deem  of  sufficient  importance  to 
require  reference  to  this  larger  body.  The  Select  Senate 
assembles  regularly  every  fortnight.  Extraordinary  meetings 
are  called  by  the  prorector.  In  cases  of  an  equality  of  votes, 
the  prorector  gives  the  casting  voice. 

The  Great  Senate  consists  of  all  the  ordinary  professors.  To 
this  senate  belongs  the  election  of  prorector,  and  other  officers 
of  the  university,  so  far  as  the  university  right  extends,  and  the 
management  of  the  affairs  consigned  to  their  care  by  the  Select 
Senate.  The  Great  Senate  has,  therefore,  no  fixed  days  of 
assembly.  The  four  faculties  of  theology,  law,  medicine,  and 
philosophy,  which  last  includes  in  itself  all  that  is  not  compre- 
hended under  the  other  three,  as  mathematics,  political  and 
states'  economy,  history,  language,  etc.  etc.,  constitute  the  main 
learned  and  scientific  fabric  of  the  university. 

The  teachers  are  divided  into  ordinary  professors ;  such 
teachers  as  occupy  the  established  professorships,  with  the 
emoluments  and  duties  thereunto  belonging ;  and  the  extraor- 
dinary professors,  such  teachers  as  possess  only  such  salary 
as  the  prince  bestows.  These  do  not  always  hold  an  actual 
professorship — and  in  this  respect,  resemble  a  third  class,  the 
so-called  Privat  Docenten ;  that  is  to  say,  gentlemen  who  de- 
vote themselve  to  an  academical  career,  who  have  taken  the 
degree  of  doctor,  and  through  a  public  disputation  have  ac- 
quired the  right  to  deliver  lectures  on  subjects  connected  with 
their  particular  department  of  science.  The  last  receive  no 
salary,  but  depend  upon  the  remuneration  derived  from  their 
classes. 

This  institution  of  private  teachers  forms  a  nursery,  out  of 
which  the  High  School  can  advantageously  recruit  itself  with 
able  professors ;  and  we  shall  have  occasion  presently  to  show 
the  great  benefit  derived  from  this  regulation,  especially  when 
compared  with  the  arrangements  of  the  French  universities. 

All  the  ordinary  professors  are  members  of  the  faculty  by 

3* 


30  GERMAN  UNIVERSITIES. 

virtue  of  their  office.  Their  rank  in  the  faculty  determines 
itself  by  the  number  of  years  during  which  they  have  occupied 
regular  professorships,  whether  in  that  in  which  they  reside,  or 
in  some  other  university  of  Germany.  The  oldest  member  of 
each  faculty  becomes,  according  to  established  rule,  its  head, 
with  the  title  of  Dean.  To  him  it  belongs  to  bring  forward  all 
affairs  of  the  faculty;  to  superintend  the  examination  of  the 
students,  as  well  as  to  issue  the  diplomas  conferred  on  them. 

The  same  honorarium  which  the  docenten  or  tutors  receive, 
receive  also  all  the  teachers  of  a  university,  from  those  students 
who  attend  their  classes.  There  are  regular  receivers,  quaes- 
tors, appointed  for  the  reception  of  the  honorarium,  or  charge 
for  the  attendance  of  lectures,  to  whom  especially  belongs  the 
reception  of  all  money  belonging  to  the  administration  of  the 
university,  and  attention  to  every  thing  connected  with  the 
financial  department. 

The  universities  possess  funds  of  their  own,  which  are  de- 
rived from  ancient  grants  from  the  princes,  and  from  private 
legacies.  To  this  fund  the  government  adds  an  annual  deter- 
minate contribution ;  and  from  this  united  income  are  defrayed 
the  total  expenses  of  the  High  School ;  as  the  salaries  of  teach- 
ers and  officers,  and  the  management  of  its  subordinate  institu- 
tions. Besides  this  financial  administration  of  the  university,  it 
has  also  a  building  and  economy  commission.  The  building- 
commission  has  the  superintendence  of  the  new  building  and 
necessary  repairs  in  the  university,  and  under  its  direction  is 
placed  the  building  inspector  with  a  yearly  salary.  In  the 
economy  department  of  the  university,  the  commission,  in  all 
that  falls  under  its  management,  has  to  maintain  a  correspon- 
dence with,  and  receive  the  approval  of  the  curatorial  office. 
It  assembles  once  a  month  under  a  director,  who  is  selected 
from  the  members  in  routine.  The  cashier  of  the  university 
has  a  seat  in  the  commissions,  and  he  is  at  the  same  time 
secretary,  and  draws  up  and  signs  the  decrees  of  the  senate. 

As  the  university  has  its  own  Board  of  Finance,  so  has  it  also 
its  Court  of  Justice.  The  peculiar  life  of  the  universities — their 
peculiar  relation  to  the  state — the  members  of  such  societies — 


OFFICERS  AND  COURTS.  31 

flowing  together,  as  they  did  and  do,  from  such  different  coun- 
tries, to  combine  themselves,  so  to  say,  into  an  imperium  in 
imperio ;  into  a  small  state,  in  fact,  which  must  enjoy  a  certain, 
and,  indeed,  ample  degree  of  freedom,  and  yet  must  be  made 
subordinate  to  the  great  state, — all  this  made  the  princes  in  the 
times  immediately  succeeding  the  founding  of  the  universities, 
feel  it  necessary  to  grant  to  them  their  own  courts  of  justice. 
So  received  these  institutions  peculiar  privileges.  Individual 
laws  were  given,  till  their  number  became  so  great  that  it  was 
requisite  to  collect  them  into  a  code.  These  laws,  as  they  at 
present  exist,  have  been  revised  by  the  government,  in  conjunc- 
tion with  the  senates  of  the  universities,  and  confirmed.  They 
bear  especially  upon  the  following  points.  First,  upon  the 
acquisition  and  forfeiture  of  the  rights  of  academical  citizenship. 
Candidates  for  matriculation  must,  upon  an  appointed  day,  and 
at  an  appointed  hour,  appear  before  the  board  of  matriculation, 
and  lay  before  it  their  certificates  of  learning  and  morals.  If 
these  are  found  satisfactory,  the  board  delivers  to  the  candidate 
the  printed  academical  regulations.  Hereupon  must  he  sign 
what  is  called  the  reverse ;  that  is,  an  attached  form  of  declara- 
tion, binding  himself  to  take  no  part  in  any  prohibited  verbindung, 
or  union,  or  in  any  designs  of  a  demagogue  burschenschaft,  but 
to  conform  himself  to  the  academical  laws.  The  new  candidate 
thereupon  gives  to  the  prorector  what  is  called  the  hand-geliibde, 
or  literally,  hand-oath  ;  that  is,  he  gives  him  his  hand,  pronounces 
what  is  above  stated,  and  then  receives  the  matriculation  cer- 
tificate, or  diploma,  which  confers  upon  him  the  enjoyment  of 
all  the  rights  of  academical  burgership.  Through  this  he  acquires 
a  claim  on  the  academical  court  of  justice,  on  the  protection  of 
the  academical  laws,  as  well  as  the  right  to  enjoy  the  benefit  of 
the  library  and  the  learned  institutions. 

No  one  who  has  not  matriculated  can  attend  the  public  lec- 
tures, except  the  tutors,  companions  or  attendants,  appointed  by 
parents  or  guardians  to  students — these,  of  course,  also  paying 
the  regular  fees — and  such  persons  not  studying  in  the  universi- 
ties as  are  so  far  advanced  in  life  as  to  put  matriculation  out  of 
the  question.  This  right  of  academical  citizenship  continues  five 


32  GERMAN  UNIVERSITIES. 

years,  provided  it  be  not  voluntarily  relinquished  or  penally  for- 
feited. The  laws  extend  themselves  to  the  relations  between 
the  students  and  the  heads,  professors,  and  subordinate  officers 
of  the  university,  as  well  as  towards  other  officers  of  the  state 
or  city.  For  instance,  the  penalties  are  stated,  for  offences 
against  these  various  officers,  as  also  the  duties  of  the  students 
in  regard  to  their  studies.  A  long  series  of  laws  defines  the 
penalties  for  the  peculiar  offences  of  students,  as  for  games  of 
hazard,  real  and  verbal  injuries  to  one  another,  especially  for 
the  duel,  under  its  various  forms;  for  breaking  the  peace, 
drunkenness,  tumults  and  uproars,  interdicted  assembling  of 
themselves  together,  secret  combinations  of  students,  etc.  It  is 
further  declared,  that  public  processions  are  only  permitted 
under  certain  conditions,  and  that  the  wearing  of  colours  is  for- 
bidden. Further  declarations  regard  the  debts  of  the  students  ; 
and  lastly,  the  regulations  under  which  the  advantages  of  the 
university  library  are  to  be  enjoyed  are  made  known. 

The  oversight  and  penal  jurisdiction  over  the  students  are 
exercised  by  the  academical  senate,  the  prorector,  and  the  amt- 
mann,  or  magistrate  of  the  university.  The  ephorat  is  a  peculiar 
board,  consisting  of  select  professors,  which  only  in  the  sphere 
of  fatherly  and  friendly  admonition  exercises  its  superintendence 
chiefly  over  the  moral  conduct  of  the  students  when  occasion 
requires ;  exhorting  them  to  diligence  and  good  behaviour,  and 
putting  itself,  if  necessary,  in  correspondence  with  their  parents. 
The  magistrate  exercises  the  jurisdiction  in  the  first  instance.  In 
criminal  cases,  he  draws  the  process,  and  sends  it,  not  to  the 
court  of  justice  of  the  university,  but  to  the  ordinary  tribunal  of 
the  state ;  in  affairs  of  discipline  he  conducts  the  inquiry,  and 
pronounces  all  academical  penalties,  with  the  exception  of  the 
consilium  abeundi.  The  proceeding  in  the  inquiry  is  summary, 
and,  in  cases  where  the  ordinary  oath  is  administered  to  people 
in  general,  is  the  ehrenwort,  or  word  of  honour  of  the  student 
demanded.  To  the  condemned  it  is  neither  allowed  to  look 
into  the  proceedings  against  him,  nor  is  the  name  of  his  accuser 
revealed.  He  must  even  submit  himself  to  the  judgment  of  the 
senate,  without  the  power  to  insist  that  the  ground  of  its  judg- 


OFFICERS  AND  COURTS.  33 

ment  shall  be  made  known.  The  appeal  from  the  sentence  of 
the  amtmann,  lies  to  the  senate,  which  also  pronounces  the 
consilium  abeundi  and  the  relegation,  on  the  motion  of  the  amt- 
mann. The  appeal  from  the  sentence  of  the  senate  lies  to  the 
minister  of  the  interior. 

For  the  administration  of  the  academical  laws  and  acts  of 
justice,  especial  police  officers,  and  beadles,  upper  and  inferior, 
are  maintained.  The  chief  beadle  in  pressing  cases,  has  the 
right  to  cite  before  him,  and  to  arrest  without  warrant,  but  must 
immediately  make  announcement  thereof  to  the  amtmann. 

The  chief  beadle,  who  lives  near  the  college,  has  at  the  same 
time,  the  care  of  the  prison,  which  is  in  the  upper  part  of  his 
house.  Two  beadles  do  duty  in  the  university  library.  In  the 
scale  of  academical  punishments,  first  stands  reproof,  then  pecu- 
niary fine,  then  incarceration.  The  signing  of  the  consilium 
abeundi,  includes  a  solemn  promise  not  to  suffer  himself  to  be- 
come guilty  in  future  of  any  offence,  even  of  smaller  moment. 
He  who,  notwithstanding,  breaks  this  promise,  and  becomes 
guilty  of  an  offence  which  would  draw  upon  another  at  least 
eight  days'  imprisonment,  can  meet  with  no  lighter  punishment 
than  the  consilium  abeundi.  This  consilium  abeundi  consists  in 
expulsion  out  of  the  district  of  the  court  of  justice  within  which 
the  university  is  situated.  This  punishment  lasts  a  year ;  after 
the  expiration  of  which  the  banished  student  can  renew  his 
matriculation.  The  relegation  is  the  punishment  next  in  severity. 
It  has  two  degrees.  First,  the  simple  relegation.  This  consists 
in  expulsion  out  of  the  aforesaid  districts,  for  a  period  of  from 
two  to  three  years ;  after  which  the  offender  may  indeed  return, 
but  can  no  more  be  received  as  an  academical  burger.  Secondly, 
the  sharper  relegation,  which  adds  to  the  simple  relegation  an 
announcement  of  the  fact  to  the  magistracy  of  the  place  of 
abode  of  the  offender ;  and  according  to  the  discretion  of  the 
court,  a  confinement  in  an  ordinary  prison,  previous  to  the 
banishment  is  added;  and  also  the  sharper  relegation  can  be 
extended  to  more  than  four  years,  the  ordinary  term,  yes,  even 
to  perpetual  expulsion.  Loss  of  honour  is  one  of  a  class  of 
severe  penalties  which  can  only  be  pronounced  by  a  civil  court 


34  GERMAN  UNIVERSITIES. 

of  justice.  Previous  to  any  consilium  dbeundi  and  relegation, 
the  university  amtmann  must  send  intelligence  to  all  the  German 
universities,  and  to  the  city  magistrates,  of  the  cause  of  the  pro- 
secution, together  with  the  signature  of  the  culprit,  and  also 
must  affix  a  copy  of  the  sentence  on  the  black  board,  that  is, 
a  black  tablet,  or  board,  in  the  university,  to  which  all  the  an- 
nouncements to  its  members  are  attached  ;  and  at  the  same  time 
must  advertise  the  parents,  or  those  standing  in  their  relation,  of 
the  same.  Causes  of  complaint,  which  a  student  considers  him- 
self to  have  against  an  academical  officer,  must  be  laid  before 
the  academical  amtmann,  if  such  officer  belong  to  the  inferior 
class  of  the  servants  of  the  High  School.  When  it  affects  a 
head  or  teacher,  then  before  the  academical  senate ;  if  it  affects 
the  prorector,  or  academical  senate,  then  it  must  be  carried  to 
the  curator  of  the  university,  who  must  receive  it,  and  lay  it 
before  the  minister  of  the  interior. 


Through  these  brief  sketches  we  hope  to  have  given  to  the 
reader  a  clear  notion  of  the  constitution  of  a  German  university, 
in  reference  to  its  financial  and  judicial  administration.  We 
have  so  far  had  Heidelberg  in  our  eye,  and  may  be  allowed  to 
do  this,  since  however  different  the  universities  of  Germany 
may  otherwise  be,  in  spirit  and  manners,  in  these  respects  they 
resemble  each  other.  Upon  the  conformity  of  their  present 
constitution  to  their  purpose,  we  may  leave  the  reader  to  make 
his  own  reflections.  This  is  a  subject  upon  which  recently  so 
much  discussion  has  taken  place,  and  so  many  proposals  have 
been  made ;  not  indeed  so  jocose  as  that  of  Lichtenberg,  where 
he  says,  "  every  university  should  have  an  ambassador  at  the 
other  universities  for  the  purpose  of  keeping  up  the  friendships 
as  well  as  the  enmities ;"  we  shall  moot  this  point  as  opportu- 
nity occurs,  we  will  at  present  make  only  a  few  observations  on 
the  constitution  of  the  universities,  as  regards  the  course  of 
studies. 

The  annual  courses  of  instruction  are  divided  into  summer 


OFFICERS  AND  COURTS.  35 

and  winter  half-years;  betwixt  come  Easter  and  Michaelmas 
as  vacations.  The  lectures,  which  in  these  annual  courses  are 
delivered,  comprehend  in  themselves  the  whole  doctrines  which 
belong  to  the  circle  of  the  four  faculties.  The  professors  are 
bound  by  the  state,  by  which  they  are  paid,  to  deliver  the  neces- 
sary lectures,  but  they  are  allowed  a  certain  freedom  in  the 
distribution  of  these  lectures  amongst  the  members  of  the  faculty. 
Every  teacher  is  bound  during  three  times  each  week,  to  deliver 
a  public  lecture,  gratis,  on  which  occasion  he  either  makes  an 
examination  of  the  students  on  the  subject  of  his  regular  course, 
or  lectures  on  an  interesting  but  generally  minor  topic  of  his 
branch  of  science  or  literature,  which  possibly  the  students 
would  hesitate  to  attend  were  they  obliged  to  pay  for  it,  and 
which  yet  may  be  important  to  the  creditable  discharge  of  their 
future  profession.  Every  lecturer  is  in  duty  bound  to  devote 
twelve  hours  per  week  to  his  regular  course,  that  is,  to  the  lec- 
tures for  which  he  receives  a  proportionate  honorarium  from  the 
students;  these  twelve  hours  being  divided  into  two  or  three 
lectures,  according  as  the  extent  of  their  matter  may  require. 
Besides  this,  it  is  the  duty  of  each  lecturer,  so  far  as  his  other 
obligations  permit,  to  be  ready  to  deliver  any  lecture  which  lies 
within  the  sphere  of  his  department  of  teaching,  when,  out  of  the 
ordinary  course,  such  is  desired  of  him  by  a  number  of  the  stu- 
dents, so  soon  as  those  who  seek  it  assure  him  of  a  proportionate 
remuneration  for  his  trouble.  To  these  Privatissimi,  as  they  are 
called,  or  especially  private  lectures,  being  once  agreed  upon, 
no  other  auditors  can  be  admitted.  Lectures  are  delivered  every 
day,  Sundays  and  holidays  excepted ;  each  delivery  continuing 
only  one  hour,  so  that  one  may  not  prevent  another.  The  ma- 
jority of  the  lectures  are  delivered  in  German,  partly  extempore 
and  partly  from  the  written  notes ;  the  latter  practice,  however, 
becoming  daily  more  rare.  A  certain  time  before  the  new 
course  begins,  a  list  is  sent  round,  on  which  each  lecturer  puts 
down  the  lectures  he  intends  to  give.  The  hours  of  delivery  are 
next  added,  in  order  to  avoid  collision.  After  its  receiving  the 
approval  of  the  curator,  it  is  published  under  the  direction  of  a 
commissioner  appointed  by  him.  The  list  is  in  German.  The 


36  GERMAN  UNIVERSITIES. 

commencement  of  each  course,  as  well  as  other  particulars  con- 
nected with  it,  is  made  known  on  the  black  board.  It  is  at  the 
option  of  each  student  which  course  or  courses  of  lectures  he 
will  attend  during  the  current  half-year,  and  he  gives  notice 
accordingly  to  the  professor  who  has  announced  that  course. 
Yet  is  the  student  in  the  German  states  obliged,  within  the 
period  of  his  whole  university  study,  to  attend  a  certain  number 
of  lectures,  if  he  wishes  to  be  admitted  to  a  state's  examination. 
Those  lectures  which  bear  upon  the  peculiar  profession  at 
which  he  aims,  are  prescribed  to  him  by  the  state  to  which  he 
belongs.  He  must  obtain  from  the  respective  lecturers,  testimo- 
nies that  he  has  diligently  studied  every  lecture  of  that  kind.  A 
copy  of  these  testimonies  is  contained  in  the  so-called  departure- 
certificate,  without  which  no  one  can  be  admitted  to  the  state's 
examination ;  and  this  certificate  is  sent  directly  by  the  prorector 
to  the  board  of  examination.  This  departure-certificate  is,  in 
fact,  on  the  student's  quitting  the  High  School,  drawn  up,  and 
signed  by  the  prorector  and  amtmann  of  the  university,  and 
contains  the  date  of  matriculation,  the  continuance  of  his  abode 
at  the  college — a  certain  term  of  abode  being  prescribed  by  the 
government  for  the  student  of  each  particular  profession, — the 
attendance  of  lectures,  a  statement  of  his  behaviour,  what  punish- 
ments he  has  become  amenable  to.  The  certificate  expressly 
announces  whether  the  student  has  taken  part  in  any  interdicted 
combination  or  not ;  whether  he  even  were  suspected  of  such 
participation,  and  on  what  grounds. 

The  university  buildings  themselves  contain  the  lecture-rooms; 
and  the  greater  part  of  those  lectures  which  are  likely  to  draw 
the  largest  audiences  are  there  delivered.  The  warming  of  the 
rooms,  and  their  lighting  up  for  the  evening  lectures,  are  the 
care  of  the  nearest  dwelling.chief-beadle.  These  buildings  con- 
tain also  a  larger  hall,  in  which  the  public  celebrations  of  uni- 
versity affairs  and  events  are  held.  In  this  hall,  for  example, 
are  annually  delivered,  publicly  and  solemnly,  the  gold  medals 
to  those  who  have  best  answered  the  prize-questions  propounded 
by  each  faculty.  The  professors  also  frequently  lecture  in  their 
own  houses.  The  medical  and  natural  history  lectures  are 


OFFICERS  AND  COURTS.  37 

mostly  in  these  buildings,  where  those  collections  of  specimens 
and  subjects  belonging  to  the  university,  which  are  necessary 
to  demonstration,  are  deposited.  Amongst  these  are  the  appa- 
ratus for  the  physical  sciences,  the  chemical  laboratory,  the 
zoological  and  mineralogical  cabinets,  the  cabinet  of  models, 
the  buildings  in  the  botanical  gardens,  and  school  of  anatomy. 
The  lectures  also  on  pathology,  surgery,  and  obstetrics,  are 
delivered  in  the  respective  hospitals  of  these  departments.  Be- 
sides the  professors  in  the  university,  also  other  teachers  of 
physical  exercises,  as  the  riding-master,  fencing-master,  dancing 
and  swimming  masters,  receive  small  salaries,  that  students 
may  not  lose  the  opportunity  of  perfecting  themselves  in  these 
arts. 

In  order  to  make  support  at  the  university  easy  to  those 
without  property,  many  regulations  are  established.  To  those 
who  can  bring  certificates  of  inability  to  pay,  the  lecture-fees 
are  remitted.  Besides  this,  in  the  different  universities  exist 
endowments,  derived  in  part  from  an  ancient  period,  for  such 
as  cannot  support  the  cost  of  a  university  life.  Many  univer- 
sities are  rich  in  such  endowments,  or  stipends.  It  is  a  popular 
joke,  that  any  student  who  arrives  at  Greifswald,  well  known 
as  the  smallest  Prussian  university,  is  asked  at  the  gate  whether 
he  will  accept  a  stipend ;  and  if  he  declines,  they  hesitate  to 
admit  him ;  since,  unless  students  enow  will  come  and  take 
them,  the  university  does  not  know  what  to  do  with  its  endow- 
ments. The  candidates  to  obtain  stipends  must  submit  to  an 
examination,  and  then  receive  half-yearly  a  fixed  sum,  which 
however,  in  case  of  ill  conduct,  can  at  the  end  of  any  half-year 
be  withdrawn.  These  endowments  are  in  the  management  of 
several  professors  of  the  academy.  The  various  seminaries 
possess  the  like;  in  particular,  the  preacher  seminary,  where 
the  young  theologians  are  prepared  for  their  future  calling. 
They  live  in  a  large  building  at  free  cost,  and  under  stricter 
oversight  than  the  rest  of  the  students.  Every  student  who  is 
in  circumstances  to  pay  the  college  fees,  must  make  half-yearly, 
a  small  contribution  to  the  sick  union,  out  of  which  sum  such 

4 


38  GERMAN  UNIVERSITIES. 

of  the  poor  students  as  become  ill  are  furnished  with  all  neces- 
sary attendance  in  particular  apartments  in  the  hospital.  For 
this  union  a  commission  is  named,  consisting  of  several  of  the 
professors,  and  some  students. 

These  slight  notices  may  be  sufficient  to  give  us  a  concep- 
tion of  the  internal  arrangements  of  one  of  the  German  uni- 
versities, which  proudly  may  the  German  say,  though  they 
may  indeed  have  their  defects,  yet  stand  far  above  all  foreign 
ones.  What  country  can  show  an  institution  so  well  organized 
and  ordered  as  our  High  Schools  ?  Truly  does  it  excite  ad- 
miration and  delight  to  see  so  small  a  state,  even  as  Baden, 
whose  peculiar  aim  is  the  diffusion  of  knowledge.  On  the  one 
hand,  teachers  paid  by  the  state,  that  they  may,  freed  from  all 
the  pressure  of  affairs,  be  able  to  dedicate  their  lives  entirely 
to  the  office  of  teaching ;  and  on  the  other,  scholars  flocking 
from  every  country,  to  avail  themselves  of  their  instructions. 

How  many  great  men  have  already  gone  forth  out  of  this 
school !  What  beneficent  influence  such  an  association  exerts 
on  the  whole  life  with  which  it  is  surrounded,  we  see  strikingly 
when  we  turn  our  eyes  elsewhere,  when  we  compare  the  fresh 
and  living  spirit  which  a  university  inspires,  with  the  unintel- 
iectual  existence  of  a  mere  mercantile  city.  Most  true  are  the 
words  of  Goethe : — "  That  academical  life,  even  if  we  cannot 
ourselves  boast  of  participation  of  its  peculiar  diligence,  yet  in 
every  species  of  accomplishment  yields  incalculable  advantages, 
since  we  are  perpetually  surrounded  by  men  who  either  possess 
knowledge,  or  seek  it,  so  that,  from  such  an  atmosphere,  even 
while  unconscious  of  it,  we  draw  actual  nourishment." — Goethe's 
Leben  Wahrheit  und  Dichtung. 

And  this  fountain  of  all  high  knowledge,  we  may  assert  it 
with  joy,  flows  not  only  for  the  wealthy  and  the  lords  of  broad 
lands.  No !  it  stands  open  to  the  poorest  amongst  the  people, 
that  it  may  call  forth  talent  and  spiritual  endowments  to  their 
highest  accomplishment !  Through  this  becomes  it  possible  to 
the  humblest  individual,  in  the  lowest  condition  of  society,  on 
the  wings  of  merit  to  soar  up,  and  that  no  heaven-gifted  head 


OFFICERS  AND  COURTS.  39 

shall  be  lost  to  the  service  of  mankind.  However  high  in 
Germany  the  advantages  of  a  university  education  are  rated, 
and  as  some  may  possibly  imagine  overrated,  yet  this  fact  has 
sprung  from  it, — that  the  richest  and  most  independent  must 
pass  some  years  at  one  of  the  High  Schools.  God  be  praised  ! 
the  number  of  those  is  few  who  look  upon  knowledge  as  a 
milch-cow,  from  which  they  may  draw  their  daily  living,  and 
on  the  university  as  a  stall,  in  which  that  useful  beast  is  reared 
and  cherished.  Men  have  learned  to  perceive  that  the  posses- 
sion of  knowledge  is  desirable  to  every  one,  even  if  he  draw 
no  direct  worldly  advantage  therefrom.  A  noble  rivalry  to 
push  discovery  farther  and  higher,  through  the  power  of  the 
human  mind,  and  to  dig  after  the  truth,  has  diffused  itself  far 
and  wide.  The  times  are  gone  by,  against  which  Rabener 
directed  the  fire  of  his  Satires.  I  recollect  where  Sancho 
Panza  in  the  discussion  on  proverbs  says  gravely — "  Beside 
the  watchman  I  know  no  one  in  our  city  who  has  attained  his 
office  in  a  creditable  manner,  and  in  passing  must  I  also 
remember,  that  he  is  the  only  one  in  our  place  that  had  under- 
standing before  he  had  his  office." 

It  is  only  by  merit  that  a  German  can  now  acquire  an 
honourable  position  in  society ;  nay,  the  rich  and  the  noble  feel 
a  pride  in  showing  the  world  that  in  them  these  merits  are  not 
wanting.  Here  is  an  example  of  this  honourable  sentiment. 

"  Shall  you  soon  depart  to  your  estate  ?"  inquired  a  foreigner 

of  the  Graf  von  Sch ,  one  of  the  richest  nobles  of  Germany, 

who  studied  jurisprudence  in  Heidelberg. 

"  No,"  replied  the  Graf,  "  I  shall  first  submit  myself  to  a 
state's  examination." 

"  Indeed  !"  replied  the  foreigner,  "  will  you  then  really  be- 
come a  legal  practitioner  ?"* 

"  No ;  but  I  will  show  to  the  world,  that  without  my  posses- 
sions I  could  have  made  my  way  by  my  acquirements." 

*  The  term  Rechtspracticant  implies  the  commonest,  the  lowest,  and  most 
tedious  stage  of  a  statesman's  career :  in  fact,  while  he  is  acting  as  a  clerk  or 
pupil  in  the  amtmann's  office,  he  acquires  practical  knowledge  of  the  administra- 
tion of  justice. 


40  GERMAN  UNIVERSITIES. 

And  to  this  diffusion  and  recognition  of  the  claims  of  know- 
ledge, to  the  scattering  abroad  of  science  amongst  the  people, 
what  has  more  contributed  than  the  foundation  of  our  univer- 
sities ?  Out  of  them  go  forth  the  distinguished  men  who  guide 
the  helm  of  the  state  with  circumspection;  out  of  them  the 
teachers  of  the  pulpit  and  the  folks-schools, — to  diffuse  light  and 
improvement  throughout  society. 


CHAPTER  II. 


GENERAL  VIEW  OF  STUDENT  LIFE. 

The  word  freedom  sounds  so  sweetly  that  we  could  not  be  without  it,  even  did 
it  indicate  error. — Goethe's  Leben  Wahrheit  und  Dichtung. 

"  FREE  is  the  Bursch !"  exclaims  a  beautiful  student-song — a 
song  beaten  so  threadbare  with  continual  singing,  that  now  we 
seldom  hear  it  sung  by  the  student  himself.  And  true  is  the 
cry ;  or  tell  me  who  is  freer  than  he  ?  Where  see  we  the  idea 
of  freedom  so  beautifully  realized  as  in  the  German  student-life  1 
He  who  has  learnt  to  know  this  life,  may  even  doubt  the  truth 
of  that  otherwise  so  true  expression  of  Schiller's — 

Freedom  is  only  in  the  realm  of  dreams. 

The  life  of  the  university  is  an  admirable  school,  which  brings 
the  young  man  quickly  to  a  sense  of  self-dependence,  which  in 
a  few  years  brings  him  to  manly  knowledge,  and  builds  him  up 
to  a  fitness  for  intercourse  with  other  men.  The  freedom  which 
the  student  enjoys  in  a  high  degree,  is  truly  a  strong  touchstone, 
— a  dangerous  rock,  on  which  many  a  one  splits, — but  it  is  the 
only  ground  on  which  genuine  knowledge  can  attain  its  noblest 
bloom.  Suddenly  liberated  from  the  fetters  of  school,  from  the 
strict  oversight  of  parents,  steps  the  young  man  into  this  life. 
He  is  distant  from  the  friends  who,  as  it  were,  shaped  his  early 

4* 


42  GENERAL  VIEW  OF 

being, — from  his  nearest  relatives.  His  whole  life's  plan  must 
be  now  fashioned  after  his  own  judgment;  he  may  enjoy  his 
pleasures  with  a  freer  choice,  and  pursue  his  studies  in  a  great 
measure  according  to  his  own  discretion.  He  stands  free  to 
choose  his  friends  from  his  numerous  fellows  ;  and  it  is  only  by 
his  own  qualities  and  endowments,  that  he  can  convert  them 
into  friends.  When  entering  on  this  new  scene  of  life,  may  he 
never  forget  the  words  of  Goethe — 

No  single  thing  can  suit  itself  to  all. 
Let  each  look  to  his  ways, 
Where  he  goes,  and  where  he  stays ; 

And  he  that  stands,  take  heed  he  do  not  fall. 

There  is  a  prejudice  which  yet  prevails  abroad,  that  the 
student,  especially  the  foreigner,  is  exposed  to  many  unplea- 
santnesses through  the  necessary  intercourse  with  his  compa- 
nions ;  the  obligation  to  take  part  in  their  customs  and  amuse- 
ments, which  are  often  denounced  as  sufficiently  rough  and 
barbarous.  This  prejudice  is  totally  groundless,  at  least  in  the 
present  times.  The  necessity  of  intercourse,  the  compulsion, 
have  no  existence  whatever.  On  the  contrary,  every  one  lets 
another  act  as  he  likes,  and  troubles  himself  no  further  about 
him,  than  as  his  society  may  be  desirable  to  the  individual 
himself.  It  is  perfectly  at  the  option  of  the  new  comer  whether 
he  will  isolate  himself,  or  in  what  society  he  will  live ;  whether 
he  will  participate  to  a  certain  degree  in  the  student  life,  or 
even  enter  into  one  of  their  Chores.  If  he  seeks  not  the  society 
of  the  students,  he  is  perfectly  secure  not  to  be  sought  after 
himself.  Nor  let  any  one,  especially  the  foreigner,  imagine  that 
he  may  claim  distinction  on  account  of  his  wealth,  or  his  high 
birth ;  or  that  he  may  expect  from  his  university  acquaintance 
particular  homage  on  that  account ;  thereby  would  he  certainly 
expose  himself  to  ridicule  and  annoyances.  Nobility  holds  in 
Germany  no  longer  such  absurd  estimation  ;  few  Germans  seek 
a  man's  acquaintance  exclusively  on  account  of  its  possession, 
and  those  few  are  despised.  This  is  a  necessary  consequence 


STUDENT  LIFE.  43 

of  the  constitutional  structure  of  our  German  states ;  and  hence 
are  the  Germans  freer  than  the  English,  who  pride  themselves 
so  much  on  their  political  liberty,  and  yet  are  such  slaves  to 
the  nobility.  This  singularity  of  the  English  often  becomes  very 
ludicrously  conspicuous  in  constitutional  Baden,  to  whose  cities 
they  so  numerously  resort;  and  the  students  of  Heidelberg  have 
often  made  themselves  merry  over  it,  especially  when  the 
English  families  in  a  neighbouring  city  have,  each  term,  picked 
out  the  address  calendar  of  the  university — a  list  of  the  students 
published  each  half  year — those  names  which  had  any  mark  of 
nobility  about  them,  and  invited  these  elite  to  their  entertain- 
ments. If  this  is  a  prominent  feeling  throughout  Germany,  it  is 
in  the  universities,  at  least  in  the  majority  of  them,  the  ruling 
one ;  and  to  make  clear  what  I  have  here  said,  I  may  quote  the 
following  words  of  Lichtenberg.  "An  equality  like  that  of  the 
French  people,  exists  amongst  the  students  of  the  universities. 
The  poorest  thinks  himself  as  good  as  the  Graf,  and  stoops  not 
to  him,  though  he  freely  leaves  him  to  enjoy  any  advantages 
that  he  may  possess.  Should  he  set  up  haughty  pretensions, 
that  were  the  way  effectually  to  ensure  a  denial  of  any  claim. 
They  are  only  proud  assumptions,  that  are  intolerable  to  the 
free  man ;  for  the  rest,  he  is  thoroughly  disposed  to  allow  to 
him  every  distinction  that  he  deserves,  and  what  these  distinc- 
tions are,  he  has  generally  correct  means  of  determining." 

The  academical  freedom  is  a  possession  dear  to  the  student. 
He  has  defended  it  with  zeal  from  the  ancient  times;  and  a 
conceived  encroachment  upon  his  privileges  has  often  occa- 
sioned general  risings  of  the  whole  student  body  against  the 
infringing  power,  which  though  they  may  not  be  wholly  com- 
mendable as  excesses,  were  always  highly  remarkable,  and 
indicate  vividly  the  spirit  of  student  life.  We  allude  to  the 
marching  forth  from  the  university  cities,  and  the  denunciations 
which  the  students  have  sometimes  pronounced,  as  a  severe 
bann  upon  them.  But  of  this  more  anon.  This  freedom  has 
the  most  beneficial  influence  on  the  prosecution  of  the  study, 
and  the  manifold  accomplishments  of  the  students.  This  has 
become  perceived  and  acknowledged  by  the  greatest  men ;  and 


44  GENERAL  VIEW  OF 

it  has  made  itself  conspicuous  that  exactly  in  those  colleges 
which  enjoy  the  highest  degree  of  freedom,  amongst  which 
Heidelberg  is  numbered,  there  also  prevails  the  most  active 
pursuit  of  every  academical  advantage.  This  free  associate-life 
of  the  students  has,  moreover,  the  most  decided  influence  on  the 
general  cultivation  of  mind  and  manners.  Flowing  from  dif- 
ferent countries,  these  diverse  elements  meet  in  the  most  varied 
points  of  contact,  and  mutually  impart  their  experience  and 
their  customs.  The  author  of  the  article  on  Heidelberg  in  the 
Halle  Year-Book,  speaks  of  Heidelberg  in  this  respect,  thus : — 
"  The  variety  of  nationalities  which  meet  in  Heidelberg  give 
an  intellectual  activity  to  the  associate-life  of  that  student-world ; 
and  preserve  it,  at  least,  from  the  eternal  monotony  of  fixed 
conventional  forms,  stale  jests,  fade  word-wit,  and  bookworm 
pedantry.  The  happy-spirited,  practical,  intelligent  Palatine; 
the  simple,  honest  Swabian,  who  has  seen  only  the  world  which 
lies  between  his  own  mountains,  but  with  his  sound,  clear  intel- 
lect, penetrates  through  every  thing ;  the  open  Rhinelander ; 
the  pithy  Hessian ;  the  polite,  socially-accomplished,  well-bred, 
reserved  North-German  ;  and  the  grave,  self-confident  Hanseat ; 
— each  brings  a  different  style  of  accomplishments,  a  different 
view  of  life,  different  experience ; — each  race  maintains  its  own 
natural  character,  without  withdrawing  itself,  however,  from 
the  impressions  of  the  other  nationalities,  and  the  equipoising 
influence  of  the  common  elements  of  their  confluent  existence. 
Add  to  these,  the  numerous  foreigners — Swiss,  French,  Belgian, 
English,  Spanish,  who  soon  find  themselves  disposed  to  attach 
themselves  in  preference  to  one  of  the  German  races,  and  ready, 
through  the  common  medium  of  social  life,  to  receive  some- 
what from  all,  and  give  to  all  somewhat,  as  it  may  happen. 
And  herewith  is  connected  this  important  consideration,  that 
these  foreign  frequenters  of  the  university  of  Heidelberg  are 
almost  wholly  connected  by  birth  with  the  higher  classes  of 
society,  and  are  impelled  by  their  professional  views  towards 
the  interests  and  the  movements  of  social  life.  They  all  bring 
thither  cultivated  mind,  and  a  broad  grasp  of  observation  of 
life  and  manners;  for  the  increase  of  which,  neither  internal 


STUDENT  LIFE.  45 

impulse  nor  external  means  are  wanting.  It  is  indispensable  to 
good  ton  amongst  the  students  of  Heidelberg,  more  or  less  to 
have  travelled.  The  vicinity  of  the  Rhine,  of  France,  of  Swit- 
zerland, excite  to  still  further  excursions,  for  which  the  vacation 
affords  a  favourable  opportunity ;  and  those  thus  returning  from 
distant  regions,  from  Paris,  from  the  Alps,  or  from  the  sea, 
bring  with  them  new  and  very  varied  impressions, — whose 
communication,  exchange,  and  turning  to  account,  again  for  a 
long  time  fill  up  and  refresh  the  intellectual  life,  not  only  of  the 
individual,  but  of  the  meetings  of  the  national  Chores,  the  asso- 
ciations formed  from  the  general  body  of  the  students. 

He  who  would  dispute  the  great  advantages  derived  directly 
from  the  social  life  of  the  students — to  which  belong  not  only 
different  nations,  but  different  faculties,  especially  in  rapidly 
developing  the  intellect — would  deny  the  advantages  of  social 
life  altogether ;  but  wo  to  the  man  who  is  disposed  to  act  upon 
such  a  notion,  and  lead  an  eremitical  life  in  accordance  with  it ; 
such  one-sidedness  of  judgment  must  inflict  upon  him  the  seve- 
rest penalty.  The  necessity  for  social  union  has  always  been 
the  more  sensibly  felt,  since  countrymen  and  friends  who  pur- 
sue different  studies,  are  thereby  much  separated  from  each 
other.  The  division  into  such  unions,  according  to  nations  and 
landsmanships,  was  the  dictate  of  nature  herself.  Their  exis- 
tence was  acknowledged  by  the  state,  and  honoured  by  it  as  a 
very  ancient  arrangement.  Out  of  these  combinations  sprung, 
about  the  end  of  the  sixteenth,  and  beginning  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  the  so-called  ORDERS.  When  at  length  their  aim  began 
to  appear  not  wholly  pure,  they  met  with  government  opposition ; 
and  in  their  place  again  stood  forth  the  landsmanschafts,  similar 
to  the  early  national  divisions,  but  so  far  different,  that  to  the 
landsmanschafts  belonged  not  only  the  students  who  were  actu- 
ally natives  of  the  country  whose  name  the  union  bore,  but  all 
who  chose  to  enter  the  same,  and  submit  themselves  to  its  regu- 
lations, were  received  by  it.  All  these  landsmanschafts  from 
1815,  amalgamated  themselves  into  one  common  Burschen- 
schaft;  till  the  bloody  act  of  Sand,  in  1819,  drew  the  attention 
of  government  upon  that  union,  and  became  the  occasion  that 


46  GENERAL  VIEW  OF 

the  greater  number  of  persons  withdrew  from  the  burschen- 
schaft,  and  again  resolved  themselves  into  particular  landsman- 
schafts ;  or,  declining  to  belong  to  extensive  unions,  lived  politi- 
cally isolated.  Those  societies  which  had  in  the  course  of 
time  assumed  so  many  different  forms,  now  began  to  frame 
their  own  laws,  and  to  choose  their  own  leaders.  The  mem- 
bers of  each  association  had  their  peculiar  badge  of  distinction, 
others  wore  their  colours ;  and  in  the  very  nature  of  things,  the 
constitution  of  such  unions  became  more  elaborate  ;  their  regu- 
lations increased  in  number ;  and  ceremonies,  in  order  to  give 
to  the  whole  exterior  pomp  and  circumstance,  could  not  be 
long  wanting.  The  rulers  of  an  earlier  age  saw  with  approval 
that  the  studentships  showed  themselves  in  the  greatest  possible 
splendour  on  public  and  solemn  occasions;  and  the  services 
•which  in  times  of  war  the  student  youth  rendered  to  the  state, 
increased  their  consideration.  In  those  days,  the  carrying  of 
weapons  was  conditionally  permitted.  So  is  it  declared  in  an 
early  ordinance  published  at  Heidelberg : — "  But  it  is  expressly 
forbidden  at  evening,  and  after  the  tolling  of  the  bell  which  calls 
the  night-watch  to  their  duty,  to  go  about  the  city  with  arms." 
To  which  is  added  the  menace,  "  that  if  any  one  dares  to  trans- 
gress this  regulation,  neither  the  rector  nor  the  high  school  shall 
be  allowed  to  liberate  or  to  defend  him." 

The  people,  on  all  occasions,  have  delighted  especially  in 
investing  public  acts  with  pageantry ;  as  for  instance,  in  the 
conferring  of  the  doctoral  degree.  This  was  attended  with 
great  ceremony,  and  without  sparing  of  cost.  The  costume  of 
professors  and  directors  was  a  peculiar  one ;  and  the  latter  even 
in  recent  years,  in  many  of  the  High  Schools,  were  expected  to 
appear  in  black  silk  stockings,  short  breeches,  a  two-pointed 
hat,  and  a  sword  by  the  side.  We  see  a  remains  of  this  cere- 
monial yet  in  the  public  solemnities  of  the  universities,  as  in 
Heidelberg,  on  the  birthday  of  the  Grand  Duke.  On  this  occa- 
sion a  procession,  composed  of  the  academical  professors  and  of 
a  deputation  from  the  students,  proceeds  from  the  hall  of  the 
universities  to  a  public  solemn  service  in  the  church,  and  after- 
wards concludes  the  festival  by,  a  dinner. 


STUDENT  LIFE.  47 

But  to  return  to  the  unions.  Thus  were  these  sanctioned  by 
the  state,  and  their  rules  acknowledged  by  it.  This  relation 
betwixt  them  and  the  state  yet  continues  in  Bavaria,  where  the 
Chores  are  bound  to  join  themselves  to  the  public  processions  in 
full  costume,  in  order  to  enhance  their  splendour.  We  have 
alluded  to  the  original  division  of  these  into  natural  landsman- 
schafts ;  to  their  combination  into  one  burschenschaft,  or  bur- 
schenship ;  but  in  all  these,  recent  times  have  produced  a  great 
change.  The  greater  part  of  the  German  governments  have 
strictly  prohibited  the  existence  of  any  unions  whatever,  bear 
what  name  they  may.  The  ground  of  this  prohibition  we  will 
inquire  more  nearly  into  in  another  place.  We  will  not  here 
inquire  whether  the  teachers  of  the  universities  were  at  all 
secretly  concerned  or  concurrent  in  this  measure ;  whether  it  be 
possible,  at  once,  to  extirpate,  trunk  and  stalk,  these  unions, 
which^are  as  fast  rooted  as  the  duel  itself.  We  will  not  ask 
whether  these  unions  do  not  yet  continue  to  exist  in  secret ;  and 
whether  in  Heidelberg,  with  whose  students  we  are  seeking  in 
these  pages  more  particularly  to  make  ourselves  acquainted,  this 
possibly  be  still  the  case.  But,  as  in  other  universities,  they 
actually  do  yet  exist,  and  as  it  is  so  recently  that  they  have  been 
generally  forbidden,  we  will,  for  once,  regard  them  as  existing, 
and  notice  more  particularly  their  constitution. 

This  constitution  is  become  by  degrees  very  elaborate,  and 
that  necessarily  so,  in  order  to  uphold  the  tottering  fabric,  since 
Chore  life  no  longer  retains  the  freshness  of  its  early  days.  In 
the  olden  time,  when  every  academician  belonged  to  these 
unions,  they  stretched  the  authority  of  their  laws  over  every 
student.  But  this  is  no  longer  the  case.  Now,  the  smaller 
proportion  of  the  students  only  enter  into  these  unions,  which 
nevertheless  represent,  to  a  certain  degree,  the  studentship ;  and 
wherever  it  becomes  necessary  to  defend  the  interests  of 
Studentdom,  the  whole  body  is  ready  to  join  them.  Certain  of 
their  laws,  whether  descending  from  the  early  times,  and  which 
are,  therefore,  faithfully  maintained  by  the  Chore  members,  or 
those  which  have  been  enacted  in  modern  times  by  the  Chores, 
yet  equally  extend  to  the  whole  body,  and  possess  an  influence 


48  GENERAL  VIEW  OF  STUDENT  LIFE. 

which  can  be  denied  by  none,  since  it  is  equally  exerted  by  the 
Chores  over  all. 

It  is  only  through  these  greater  organized  masses  that  it  is 
possible  for  studentship  to  proceed  in  its  oneness.  The  internal 
arrangements  of  a  Chore  possess,  on  this  one  account,  an  inte- 
rest, and  deserve  our  attention  the  more,  inasmuch  as  we  have 
already  said  these  Chores  exert  an  influence  over  the  rest  of  the 
students ;  and  this  renders  it  incumbent  that  before  we  speak  of 
the  students  at  large,  we  should  acquaint  ourselves  more  inti- 
mately with  the  present  Chore  life. 


CHAPTER  III. 


THE  CHOKE. 


Now  first  of  all,  to  drive  scholastic  folly, 
I'll  bring  thee  to  a  jovial  set,  and  jolly. 

Goethe's  Faust. 


THE  different  Chores  have  adopted  their  names,  exactly  like 
the  early  landsmanschafts,  from  the  different  German  nations. 
Yet  are  these,  as  we  have  already  hinted,  no  longer  so  scrupu- 
lous in  the  reception  of  the  new  members  as  those  were,  to 
which  none  could  belong  but  the  actual  natives  of  that  country 
whose  appellation  the  union  bore.  If  any  man  would  still  per- 
suade himself  that  the  ancient  practice  is  yet  continued,  he  must 
construct  in  his  own  head  a  very  peculiar  geography.  As 
these  unions  bear  the  names  of  the  different  nations,  so  the  mem- 
bers of  each  wore  publicly  their  respective  colours,  which,  since 
the  interdict  against  them,  of  course,  is  no  longer  the  case. 
These  colours  were  not  only  displayed  on  the  cap,  but  also  on  a 
broad  band  which  was  worn  over  the  breast.  The  prohibition 
of  the  Chore  colours  was  a  severe  blow  to  the  unions,  and  the 
students  sought  in  various  ways  waggishly  to  surmount  it. 
Instead,  therefore,  of  one  student,  as  before,  wearing  the  three 
united  colours,  as  it  might  be  green,  white,  and  black, — each 
Chore  having,  for  the  most  part,  like  its  nation,  three, — now 
went  three  students  arm  in  arm,  each  of  them  wearing  one  of 
the  three  colours,  so  that  the  whole  three  colours  were  combined 

5 


50  STUDENT  CHORES, 

in  three  friends.     This  attempt,  however,  led  its  authors  no 

further  than  into  the  student-prison. 

The  principal  of  the  regular  Chores  are — 

The  Rhenish,  whose  colours  are — blue,  red,  and  white. 

The  Hanseatic,  "         "       white,  red,  and  white. 

The  Westphalian,  "         "       green,  white,  and  black. 

The  Swabian,  "         "       black,  yellow,  and  white. 

The  Nassau,  "        "       blue,  white,  and  orange. 

The  Swiss,  "        "       green,  red,  and  gold. 

The  Sachsen-Borussen,  or  Prussian,  white,   green,   black   and 

white. 

The  English,  in  Leipsic  only. 

Besides  this,  each  Chore  has  its  sign,  or  token ;  that  is,  cer- 
tain letters  curiously  interwoven,  with  which  it  signs  its  docu- 
ments, and  which  is  known  to  all  the  other  Chores.  The 
number  of  these  Chores  is  not  always  the  same  in  the  universi- 
ties. Now  one  dissolves  itself  on  account  of  the  fewness  of  its 
members ;  and  now  a  new  one  shows  itself.  When  a  number 
of  students  find  themselves  together,  who  regard  themselves 
numerous  enough  to  constitute  a  Chore,  and  are  desirous  to 
become  such,  the  first  thing  which  they  proceed  to  do  is  to 
elect  their  leaders.  These,  as  the  representatives  of  the  new 
union,  appear  before  the  S.  C. — that  is,  the  senior  convent,  or 
assembly  of  seniors — which  is  the  highest  tribunal  of  the  students 
for  the  settlement  of  all  affairs  occurring  amongst  them.  This 
tribunal  inquires  into  the  sufficiency  of  the  aspirants,  and  if  the 
result  is  satisfactory,  gives  its  consent.  The  Chore  appears  as 
such  at  the  next  Mlgemeine.  By  the  Jlllgemeine  is  understood 
the  meeting  of  the  whole  united  Chores,  which  takes  place  from 
time  to  time  in  an  Allgemeine  Kneipe,  or  general  drinking  com- 
pany, in  the  same  manner  as  each  particular  Chore  holds,  every 
evening,  its  meeting,  where  the  members  drink,  sing,  and  enter- 
tain each  other.  In  this  Jlllgemeine,  or  general  meeting,  the 
members  of  the  different  Chores  have  a  fine  opportunity  to  pick 
quarrels  with  one  another, — in  student  phrase,  to  touchiren  each 
other;  that  is,  to  give  offence,  so  that  the  swords  may  not 
rust.  The  newly  established  Chore  now  takes  the  customary 


OR  UNIONS.  51 

course.  It  strikes  up  a  friendly  alliance  with  one  of  the  already 
existing  Chores,  in  which  its  members  find  the  greatest  number 
of  their  acquaintances,  at  the  same  time  that  it  assumes  a  hostile 
attitude  to  another.  It  falls  into  dispute  with  the  hostile  Chore, 
and  what  is  called  the  Chore-halze,  a  regular  Chore-baiting, 
breaks  out ;  that  is,  there  ensues  a  general  challenging  between 
the  members  of  the  two  Chores. 

The  duels  thus  originated  are  fought  in  succession,  and  the 
Chore  is  said  to  pawk  itself  out ;  that  is,  to  drum  or  fight  itself 
forward.  Hereby  it  testifies  its  mastership  with  its  weapons, 
and  intense  is  the  interest  which  hangs  on  the  result  of  the  Paw- 
kereien,  or  fights,  between  the  leaders  of  each  Chore.  The  con- 
querors have  their  victory  celebrated  by  their  companions  the 
same  evening  in  the  Kneipe,  where  they  triumph  over  their 
antagonists.  When  a  Chore  has  thus  proved  itself,  it  holds  its 
Jlntrttt-Commers — entrance,  or  opening  commerce,  or  festivity, 
of  which  more  hereafter;  and  to  which  the  new  Chore  invites 
the  leaders  of  the  other  Chores.  The  qualifications  by  which  a 
member  of  a  Chore  can  raise  himself  in  it,  are  practice  in  the 
exercise  of  arms,  bodily  and  intellectual  dexterity  in  general;  a 
good  stomach,  that  he  may  be  able  to  carry  plenty  of  beer ; 
and,  besides  these,  a  powerful  voice  is  a  grand  requisite.  As 
observed,  the  members  of  the  Chore  elect  their  leaders^  The 
first  of  these  is  the  Senior.  He  must  possess  the  qualifications 
we  have  mentioned  in  a  preeminent  degree,  and  must  have 
already  passed  through  the  other  offices  of  the  Chore,  as  here 
following.  He  possesses  a  great  and  scarcely  limited  power, 
and  his  duty  in  return  is  to  advance  every  where  the  interests  of 
the  Chore,  to  exert  himself  for  its  credit  in  connexion  with  and 
in  reference  to  the  other  Chores,  and  thus  to  maintain  its  respect, 
so  as  much  as  possible  to  raise  its  splendour  and  reputation ;  in 
short,  he  must,  on  every  occasion,  defend  the  honour  of  the 
Chore.  He  who  possesses  the  next  place  of  honour  is  called 
the  Consenior,  or  Zweiter  Chargirte,  that  is,  holder  of  the  second 
charge ;  and  next  to  him  stands  the  Drittc  Chargirte,  or  third 
officer.  The  Consenior  is,  as  it  were,  war-minister  and  general 
in  the  same  person.  All  that  relates  to  weapons  and  their  use 


52  STUDENT  CHORES, 

belongs  to  his  department;  he  has  therefore  the  care  of  the 
Fecht-boden,  or  fencing-school,  and  the  weapons  of  the  duel. 
He  must  be  a  good  swordsman,  as  he  is  bound  to  act  as  second 
in  every  occurring  case,  when  any  one  fights  with  the  weapons 
of  the  Chore,  and  no  other  able  swordsman  is  ready  to  do  the 
duty  of  his  office ;  he  must  be  careful  to  have  the  weapons  of 
the  Chore,  that  is,  an  armoury  of  all  things  which  belong  to  the 
different  species  of  duel,  always  in  the  best  condition.  The 
Dritte  Chargirte  represents  the  finance-minister.  He  has  to 
manage  all  the  money  affairs  of  the  Chore,  and  the  Chore 
treasury  is  under  his  superintendence.  This  is,  in  fact,  a  trea- 
sury, into  which  every  member  of  the  Chore  pays  a  determinate 
sum,  out  of  which  all  expenses  of  the  union  are  defrayed.  The 
remainder  of  the  members  of  the  Chore  are  styled  Chore-Bur- 
schen,  and  Renoncen ;  and  to  these,  lastly,  add  themselves  the 
Mit-kneipanten,  or  boon-companions,  who  belong  not  properly 
to  the  Chore  itself.  These  are  such  students  as  join  themselves 
to  the  Chore,  frequent  the  meetings  at  the  Kneipe  t  and  take  part 
in  their  other  pleasures,  without  involving  themselves  with  the 
affairs  of  the  Chore.  They  maintain  a  friendly  intercourse  with 
the  students  of  the  Chore,  augment  the  appearance  of  the  Chore 
by  their  numbers,  and  in  return  enjoy  from  the  union  a  certain 
degree  of  protection,  with  whose  weapons  they  also  fight. 
They  pay  less  for  the  loan  of  the  weapons  than  the  other 
students  and  are  allowed  to  use  them  for  a  fixed  sum  for  a 
whole  course,  that  is,  for  the  half-year. 

On  the  very  lowest  step  of  the  Chore  stands  the  Renonce,  who 
has  neither  seat  nor  voice  in  the  Chore-Convent,  or  official 
meeting  of  the  Chore.  The  Renoncen  are  for  the  most  part 
harassed  with  menial  services.  They  must  convey  the  weapons 
— which  are  usually  kept  in  the  place  of  contest,  locked  up,  those 
of  each  Chore  in  its  own  chest — in  case  of  danger  from  the 
authorities,  or  of  any  necessity,  to  a  place  of  safety ;  when  there 
is  singing  in  the  Kneipe,  they  must  hand  round  the  Commers- 
Books,  the  song-books ;  and  besides  this,  on  occasion  of  every 
duel  that  is  to  be  fought  with  the  weapons  of  the  Chore,  they 
must  go  at  night,  after  the  Kneipe  is  over,  to  the  house  of  the 


OR  UNIONS.  53 

Pawk-doctor,  the  surgeon  of  the  students,  who  is  always  in 
attendance  at  the  duels — and  announce  to  him  the  fact,  with  the 
time  at  which  it  is  to  take  place.  In  all  the  Chores  they  are 
bound  to  appear  at  the  Kneipe,  on  certain  days,  and  failing  in 
this  respect,  are  mulct  in  a  pecuniary  fine.  In  different  Chores 
this  attendance  of  the  Renonce  is  different:  in  some,  it  must  be 
daily ;  in  others,  three  or  four  times  a  week ;  and  is  not  to  be 
omitted  without  substantial  reason. 

Between  the  Renoncen  and  the  Chore-Burschen,  stands  the 
Fuchs-majoi — the  greater  Fox — who  is  always  the  oldest  Re- 
nonce,  and  has  the  right  to  go  into  the  Chore-Convent,  but  is  not 
entitled  there  to  speak.  If  the  Renonce  will  advance  to  the 
rank  of  Chore-Bursch,  it  is  indispensable  that  he  shall  have 
fought  three  duels. 

The  Chore-Bursch  has  this  peculiar  duty ;  he  must  settle  and 
determine  with  the  strange  Kneipe ;  that  is,  when  a  duel  is  to  be 
fought  with  the  weapons  of  his  Chore,  he  must  seek  out  him 
who  has  challenged,  in  his  Kneipe,  and  announce  to  him  the 
spot  and  hour  at  which  the  duel  is  to  take  place.  One  of  the 
Chore-Burschen  must  always  be  present  at  every  duel  which  is 
fought  with  the  weapons  of  their  Chore.  When  the  Dritte- 
Chargirte,  that  is,  the  treasurer,  is  unable,  from  any  cause,  to 
fulfil  the  duties  of  his  office,  the  oldest  Chore-Bursch  must  offi- 
ciate for  him ;  so  also  in  cases  of  similar  emergency,  the  Dritte- 
Chargirte  steps  into  the  place  of  the  second,  and  he  into  that 
of  the  Senior.  Besides  the  obligation  to  appear  on  the  appointed 
Kneipe  days,  the  Chore  members  must  also,  at  the  fixed  hours, 
attend  the  fencing-school,  or  pay  a  pecuniary  penalty.  The 
reception  of  a  Renonce  into  the  Chore,  as  well  as  his  advance- 
ment to  the  rank  of  Bursch,  is  accompanied  by  certain  solem- 
nities, and  by  the  reading  of  the  constitution  of  the  union.  This 
constitution  is  held  profoundly  secret,  and  cannot  pass  out  of  the 
hands  of  the  three  Chargirten,  who  received  it  at  the  opening  of 
the  Chore,  from  the  Senioren-Convent,  or  official  meeting  of  the 
Seniors  of  the  different  Chores — the  so-called  S.  C.  Every 
Chore  has  its  weekly  Chore-Convent,  wherein  the  Senior  presides, 
and  the  Chore-Burschen  are  present.  Here  the  affairs  of  the 

5* 


54  STUDENT  CHORES, 

Chore  are  discussed,  and  resolutions  passed.  The  Consenior 
opens  these  resolutions  to  the  Renouncen,  in  the  likewise  weekly 
held  Renoncen-Convent,  or  official  meeting  of  the  Renoncen, 
•which  has  to  carry  them  into  effect,  without  power  to  alter  them. 
As  the  Chore-Convent  in  each  Chore  is,  so  to  say,  its  first  board 
of  Administration,  so  there  is  a  supreme  board  over  all  the  Chores, 
and  thus,  to  a  certain  degree,  over  the  whole  body  of  students. 
It  constitutes  the  highest  court  of  honour  of  the  students.  It  is 
composed  of  the  whole  Chargirten  of  the  whole  Chores.  Each 
Chore  possesses,  in  alphabetical  rotation,  the  presidency;  and 
the  Convents,  or  meetings,  held  at  the  Kneipe-room  of  that  Chore 
•which  at  that  time  is  in  power.  The  presidency  changes  monthly, 
so  that,  as  the  court  is  held  four  times  in  each  month,  it  falls 
four  times  in  each  Chore,  which  has  to  defray  the  cost  of  the 
beer  that  is  therein  drunk.  The  Senoir  of  this  Chore  is  president, 
the  Consenior  vice-president,  and  the  Dritte-Chargirte  secretary. 
Under  the  jurisdiction  of  this  court  fall  general  affairs,  those 
which  affect  the  interests  of  all  students;  and  it  passes  all  the 
resolutions,  to  which  the  whole  student-body  of  the  university 
must  submit  itself.  It  keeps  what  students  call  Allgemeine  Com- 
ment, that  is,  the  student  code  of  laws.  It  addresses  itself  to 
protect  their  rights  from  all  encroachments.  It  hurls  the  terrors 
of  its  Bannstrahl,  that  is,  of  its  power  of  excommunication,  upon 
students  or  citizens,  upon  individuals  or  large  bodies.  When  a 
burger  of  the  university  city,  or  of  the  vicinity,  whose  trade 
derives  benefit  from  the  students — for  example,  an  innkeeper,  or 
a  shopkeeper — treats  a  student  harshly  or  unjustly,  the  complaint 
must  lay  his  charge  before  this  court.  His  memorial  to  the  S.  C. 
must  be  drawn  up  in  due  form,  according  to  the  nature  of  its 
contents,  and  established  custom,  and  must  bear  the  signature  of 

O 

one  of  the  Seniors.  The  S.  C.  now  makes  inquiry  into  the  guilt 
or  innocence  of  the  accused.  If  he  be  found  guilty,  it  decrees  the 
punishment,  which  consists  in  proscription,  for  a  longer  or  shorter 
period.  This  state  of  proscription,  or  being  under  the  bann,  is 
very  exactly  determined  in  years,  months,  weeks,  and  days; 
and  during  this  period  no  student,  be  he  in  Chore  or  not  in  Chore, 
dare  to  purchase  any  thing  from  the  condemned,  or  enter  his 


OR  UNIONS.  55 

house,  otherwise  he  exposes  himself  to  the  certain  danger  of 
being  also  laid  under  the  bann,  and  the  Chores  regularly  send 
their  people  to  see  whether  any  violation  of  their  edict  take 
place.  For  instance,  should  a  proscribed  innkeeper  have  a  ball 
or  dance  in  his  house,  the  Chore  emissaries  will  be  there  to  see 
whether  any  student  shows  himself  at  it.  The  student  falls  under 
similar  punishment  who  is  accused  and  found  guilty  of  refusing 
to  give  satisfaction  by  duel  to  another  that  he  has  insulted.  Yet 
is  no  one  compelled  to  the  duel  by  this  regulation.  If  a  student 
will  not  fight,  whether  from  a  principle  against  it,  or  any  other 
cause,  he  must,  once  for  all,  announce  this  fact  to  the  S.  C.,  and 
he  stands  exempt,  only,  he  cannot  be  allowed  to  make  any 
exception  to  the  rule  which  he  has  himself  thus  laid  down.  If 
he  commits  assault  or  aggression  against  any  student  or  students, 
having  thus  sheltered  himself  from  the  necessity  of  the  duel, 
though 'he  be  no  longer  amenable  to  this  particular  law  of  the 
student  world,  he  is  still  amenable  to  the  laws  of  his  country, 
and  may  be  summoned  before  the  amtmann  to  answer  for  his 
offence.  Should  he  meanly  avail  himself  of  such  a  declaration 
against  fighting,  and  yet  permit  himself  to  insult  or  annoy  his 
fellow-students,  so  cunningly  as  not  to  come  within  the  opera- 
tion of  any  civil  statute,  and  yet  to  be  offensive  and  obnoxious 
to  the  rules  and  maxims  of  social  life,  he  will  be  shunned  and 
despised  by  the  students,  and  will  find  himself  pretty  much  in 
the  same  situation  as  he  who  is  actually  under  the  bann.  The 
bann  is  chiefly  launched  against  students  for  such  offences  as 
are  considered  to  amount  to  loss  of  honour — such  as  one  student 
giving  another  a  box  on  the  ear,  or  a  student  committing  a  theft ; 
and  therefore  to  him  who  lies  under  the  Verruf,  or  proscription, 
on  such  account,  there  remains  scarcely  an  alternative  but  to 
quit  the  university,  where  every  channel  of  intercourse  would  be 
closed  against  him,  and  where  he  would  be  shunned  by  all. 
Whole  university  cities  have  at  times  been  laid  under  the  bann, 
examples  of  which  we  shall  give  as  we  proceed. 

The  Chargirten  watch  over  the  institutions  of  the  Chores  and 
of  the  students  in  general, — or,  in  other  words,  over  the  so-called 
Jlttgemeine  Comment.  They  settle  also  the  time,  place,  and 


56  STUDENT  CHORES, 

manner  of  all  the  public  festivities  and  celebrations.  They 
determine  whether,  and  in  what  style,  a  torch-train,  or  a  "  Vivat," 
shall  be  got  up;  in  what  manner  a  deceased  member  of  the  Chore 
shall  be  interred;  and  how  the  studentship  shall  be  represented 
in  the  public  solemnities  of  the  High  School.  They  direct  the 
choice  of  the  ball  directors,  who  take  part  in  the  direction  of  the 
public  balls,  as,  for  instance,  in  those  at  the  Museum  at  Heidel- 
berg. The  presiding  Chore  fixes  the  Allgemeine,  or  general 
assembly,  and  announces  it  to  the  other  Chores. 

Besides  this  court  of  honour,  there  also  exists  a  Beer  court, 
which  has  to  settle  all  contentions  that  arise  in  the  drinking 
companies  on  points  of  drinking  etiquette,  which,  as  we  shall 
hereafter  find,  are  no  few  in  number.  To  the  constitution  of 
this  beer  court,  one  man  is  chosen  out  of  each  Chore,  and  the 
oldest  Chore-Bursch  is  generally  elected  for  this  purpose.  It  is 
held  in  regular  routine  at  every  Kneipe-room  of  the  Chores  in 
succession.  Of  the  beer  court  generally  we  shall,  anon,  speak 
more  particularly,  and  here  need  say  no  more  than  that  before 
the  principal  Beer  court,  the  accuser  must  have  two  witnesses, 
who  must  give  their  statements  on  their  word  of  honour,*  and 
the  accused  must  in  his  defence  be  supported  by  two  witnesses 
also.  Thus  constitute,  as  may  be  seen  from  what  is  already 
stated,  these  unions,  an  aristocracy  amongst  the  students,  which 
exercises  a  certain  influence  over  the  general  academical  class; 
which  contributes  to  establish  a  principle  of  unity  amongst  them ; 
and  whose  members  are  ready  to  give  up  some  portion  of  their 
personal  freedom,  for  the  consideration  and  authority  which  they 
acquire  in  the  social  system  ;  and  so  alluring  is  the  feeling  of  the 
members  of  Chores  in  public  processions,  Commerses, — parties 
which  they  make  to  some  place  in  the  country  for  a  day's  jolli- 
fication, and  whither  they  go  in  a  long  train  of  carriages  with 
outriders  ;  and  in  Comitaten, — processions  formed  to  accompany 
a  departing  fellow-student  with  public  honour  out  of  the  city, — 
being  enabled  to  play  the  gentleman,  and  to  renommiren,  or  in 

*  The  words  in  the  original  are  "  on  their  Cerevis,"  a  student  term,  "  on  their 
beer ;"  meaning,  in  the  beer-court,  on  their  honour. 


OR  UNIONS.  57 

English  popular  phrase, "  to  cut  a  swell,"  that  members  are  never 
wanting  to  these  societies. 

There  yet  remains  to  be  mentioned  the  numerous  class  of 
students  termed,  in  student  phrase,  Camels — amongst  whom  are 
again  contemptuously  distinguished  those  who  live  totally  isolated 
and  retired,  and  never  on  any  occasion,  or  on  any  account,  visit 
the  Chores,  their  Kneips,  or  take  any  part  in  their  festivities 
and  processions,  and  are  therefore  ignominiously  dubbed  Kettles, 
Bookworms,  etc.  Tn  conclusion,  we  must  employ  a  few  sen- 
tences on  the  early  Burschenschaft  and  the  modern  fragments 
of  its  wreck. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


THE    BURSCHENSCHAFT. 


But  nothing  comes  up  to  our  pleasant  self-satisfaction,  when  we  erect  ourselves 
into  judges  of  the  high  and  the  distinguished,  of  Princes  and  Statesmen ;  find 
public  institutions  clumsy  and  absurd ;  observe  only  possible  and  actual  impedi- 
ments ;  and  acknowledge  neither  the  greatness  of  the  intention,  nor  the  co-opera- 
tion, which  in  every  undertaking  are  to  be  expected  from  time  and  circumstances. 

Hauff's  Memoirs  of  Satan. 


WE  have  already  traced  the  derivation  of  the  word  "  Bursche," 
and  observed  that  the  first  unions  of  the  students  were  designated 
"  Landsmanschai'ts"  and  "Orders."  The  origin  of  the  first  actual 
Burschenschaft  is  to  be  sought  in  the  times  when,  on  the  esta- 
blishment of  the  Rhenish  Prince-league,  which  placed  itself  sub- 
missively under  the  sceptre  of  Napoleon,  and  the  consequent 
abdication  of  the  imperial  throne  of  Germany  by  Francis  II.  in 
1806,  every  heart  that  beat  with  a  German  feeling  must  have 
been  seized  with  the  deepest  sorrow  at  the  fall  and  dashing  to 
pieces  of  the  Fatherland.  An  earnest  desire  to  be  able  to  give 
help  to  the  outraged  country — the  belief  in  a  God  who  alone 
was  able  to  free  it  from  its  oppressions — filled  the  heart  of  the 
patriot,  and  must  have  roused  him  to  a  tone  of  mind,  than  which 
nothing  could  be  farther  from  that  serene  enjoyment  of  life, 
often  bordering  on  actual  frivolity,  to  which  the  members  of 
academical  unions  were  not  rarely  accustomed  to  resign  them- 
selves. A  patriotic  spirit,  a  zealous,  earnest  aspiration,  had 


THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT.  59 

already  proclaimed  itself  in  the  latter  years  of  the  former  cen- 
tury. Already  in  its  seventieth  year  had  the  Poet-league  at 
Gottingen  organized  itself  under  Klopstock.  John  Heinrich 
Voss,  the  two  Grafs  Stollberg,  Holty,  and  others,  belonged  to  it. 
At  the  same  time  tumbled  that  fabric  which  the  Order  of  Jesus 
had  artfully  raised,  and  the  German  language  was  finally  esta- 
blished in  those  rights,  out  of  which  it  had  so  long  been  expelled. 
The  lachrymose  tribe  of  common  tragedies,  and  the  moving 
comedies  with  which  Kotzebue  and  Iffland  overflowed  the  stage, 
were  compelled  to  give  place  to  knightly  dramas,  and  Goethe's 
Gotz  von  Berjichingen  became  for  the  hundredth  time  imitated. 
The  German  Muse  attained  a  higher  flight  through  Lessing,  and 
finally  displayed  herself  to  the  world  in  the  two  noble  forms  of 
Schiller  and  Goethe.  The  first,  far  from  all  lightness,  full  of 
deep  earnestness  and  noble  sentiment,  sought  chiefly  to  effect  the 
moral  elevation  and  intellectual  accomplishment  of  youth ;  and 
the  youthful  freshness  of  his  language  gave  to  his  often  more 
philosophical  than  poetical  reflections  and  sentences,  an  irresisti- 
ble charm  for  young  minds.  Goethe  moved  in  a  contrary  direc- 
tion. With  a  predominant  sentiment  for  beauty,  and  an  eminent 
talent  for  imitation,  he  sported  through  every  department  of 
literature,  and  floated  perpetually  with  the  current  of  the  intel- 
lectual tendency  of  the  age.  By  such  men  the  German  language 
was  speedily  advanced  to  its  point  of  perfection ;  the  French 
language  ceased  to  be  the  conversation  language  of  the  court 
and  of  the  polite  circles.  Joseph  II.  introduced  the  German 
language  into  the  court  of  Vienna ;  after  the  death  of  Frederick 
II.  it  became  acknowledged  as  that  of  the  court  of  Prussia. 
For  a  long  time  Weimar  became  pre-eminently  the  capital  city 
of  German  accomplishment;  and  Goethe,  Schiller,  Wieland, 
Herder,  and  other  distinguished  men,  found  in  the  court  of 
Weimar,  a  sphere  of  action  as  honourable  for  themselves  as 
advantageous  to  the  literature  of  their  country.  The  French 
ascendency  in  literature  had  thus  ceased  at  the  very  point  of 
time  when  the  French  political  ascendency  came  to  lie  heavy 
and  oppressively  on  the  nation;  the  literary  honour  sharpened 
that  bitter  feeling  of  political  shame,  and  the  more  the  German 


60  THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT. 

people  learned  to  feel  it,  the  stronger  became  its  impatience  to 
liberate  itself  from  that  condition  into  which  it  had  been  reduced 
by  the  French.  But  on  whom  must  this  feeling  have  seized 
more  powerfully  than  on  the  student?  To  whom  must  the 
situation  of  Germany  have  occasioned  more  serious  apprehen- 
sions than  to  him?  On  the  one  hand,  sufficiently  instructed  to 
perceive  the  dangers  which  threatened  the  political  and  literary 
liberty  of  Germany ;  on  the  other,  full  of  youthful  spirit,  and  of 
desires  to  help  the  oppressed  Fatherland, — such  sentiments  must 
have  weaned  the  students  from  the  trivial  pursuit  of  Landsman- 
ships  and  Orders,  and  accordingly  those  of  the  same  sentiment 
united  themselves  into  a  Burschenschaft.  The  object  of  this  first 
union  was  noble;  namely,  to  rescue  the  Fatherland;  and  in  order 
to  be  able  to  do  this  worthily,  to  raise  up  men  strengthened  to 
the  utmost  completeness  of  both  moral  and  physical  constitution. 
Thence  came  it,  that  bodily  exercises,  especially  gymnastics, 
rose  into  new  existence ;  that  the  Burschen  sought  to  invigorate 
themselves  by  hardships  of  every  kind;  thence,  that  they  strove 
after  the  greatest  possible  purity  of  manners,  and  displayed  a 
spirit  of  hostility  towards  the  less  pure  tendencies  of  the  yet 
existing  orders.  Germany's  noblest  sons  belonged  then  to  the 
Burschenschafts.  These  unions  had  their  leaders  and  laws, 
much  in  the  same  manner  as  the  Chores.  Their  leaders  were 
the  so-called  Riigemeister,  monitors,  or  judges,  and  had  their 
speaker,  who,  in  the  assembly,  made  statement  to  the  people  of 
whatever  affairs  appeared  of  importance  to  them.  In  these 
companies  ruled  no  aristocratic  power,  as  was  the  case  in  those 
of  the  Chores,  especially  towards  the  younger  members.  To 
establish  a  thorough  union  amongst  the  students,  was  a  main 
object  of  the  Burschenschaft.  On  this  account  the  duel  was  not 
permitted  between  the  members  of  the  union ;  and  duels  between 
the  members  of  the  orders  were  very  much  circumscribed,  and 
only  in  cases  of  real  injuries,  or  gross  offences,  and  then  under 
certain  conditions,  permitted  by  the  court  of  honour.  The  Bur- 
schenschafts of  different  university  cities  stood  in  combination 
with  each  other,  and  members  from  one  city  were  in  the  habit 
of  making  visits  to  the  members  of  the  other  university  cities. 


THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT.  61 

The  Burschenschafts,  as  then  constituted,  were  in  most  places 
allowed,  or  at  least,  tolerated.  They  celebrated  often,  and  with 
the  consent  of  the  prorector,  their  so-called  foundation-day,  or 
anniversary,  with  great  banqueting,  public  processions,  music, 
and  torch-trains.  The  members  of  these  companies  conducted 
themselves  so  discreetly,  that  people  willingly  suffered  them, 
and  any  little  distinctions  which  might  gratify  youthful  vanity — 
the  wearing  of  the  old  German  costume,  the  short  coat,  the 
broad  out-lying  shirt-collar,  with  the  open  breast,  the  cap  which 
but  scantily  covered  the  long  down-hanging  hair,  and  which,  as 
well  as  the  coat,  was  mostly  of  black  velvet — such  old  German- 
isms and  peculiar  attire — were  cheerfully  conceded  to  them. 
Hitherto  must  the  life  and  movements  of  the  Burschenschaft  be 
styled  noble.  With  enthusiasm  its  members  received  the  call 
to  the  fight  of  freedom,  which  resounded  from  Prussia  in  the 
year  J813;  and  from  all  the  universities  streamed  forth  volun- 
teers, to  join  themselves  to  the  German  host,  which  was  to  do 
battle  with  the  oppressors  of  the  Fatherland.  Theodore  Korner 
has  immortalized  in  his  songs  the  feettngs  and  sentiments  of  the 
German  youth  at  that  glorious  crisis.  Many  Burschen  died, 
like  him,  the  hero's  death,  inspired  with  equal  zeal  for  the  good 
cause,  though  it  was  alone  permitted  to  the  poet  to  flash  radiantly 
forth,  as  from  a  mirror,  the  inner  glow  of  his  spirit  in  patriotic 
song. 


THE  SWORD  SONG. 

Sword  on  my  left  side  gleaming, 
What  means  thy  clear  eyes'  beaming  ? 
Thou  look'st  with  love  on  me, 
And  I  have  joy  in  thee. 

Hurrah!  Hurrah!  Hurrah! 

A  soldier  bears  me  dearly, 
Hence  beam  I  forth  so  cheerly ; 
I  am  a  free  man's  choice, 
Which  makes  the  Sword  rejoice. 
Hurrah!  Hurrah!  Hurrah! 
6 


62  THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT. 

Good  Sword  !  yes,  free  I  hold  thee, 
And  in  heart's  love  enfold  thee, 
As  if  thou  wert  allied 
To  me,  a  lovely  bride. 

Hurrah  !  Hurrah !  Hurrah  ! 

Already  it  is  tendered, 
To  thee  my  life  surrendered ; 
Ah !  were  we  so  allied ; 
When  wilt  thou  fetch  thy  bride  ? 
Hurrah !  Hurrah  !  Hurrah ! 

The  bridal  night's  red  morning 
Breaks  to  the  trumpet's  warning ; 
When  cannon  peals  begin, 
Fetch  I  the  loved-one  in. 

Hurrah !  Hurrah !  Hurrah  ! 

0  sweet  embrace !  untiring, 

1  tarry  still  desiring; 

Then  bridegroom  fetch  thou  me, 
My  garland  waits  for  thee. 

Hurrah !  Hurrah !  Hurrah  ! 

Why  in  thy  scabbard  ringing, 
Thou  Iron-joy  art  springing 
Jn  such  wild  battle-glow  1 
My  Sword,  why  ring'st  thou  so  1 

Hurrah !  Hurrah !  Hurrah  ! 

Ah !  in  the  scabbard  ringing, 
I  long  to  be  forth  springing, 
Right  wild  with  battle-glow ; 
Hence,  soldier,  clink  I  so ! 

Hurrah!  Hurrah!  Hurrah! 

Wait  in  thy  chamber  narrow, 
What  wouldst  thou  here,  my  marrow1? 
Wait  in  thy  chamber,  wait ; 
I'll  fetch  thee,  ere  'tis  late. 

Hurrah!  Hurrah!  Hurrah! 


THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT.  63 

Leave  me  not  long  in  sadness, 
Thou  garden  of  love's  gladness, 
Where  blood-red  roses  breathe, 
And  blossom  flowers  of  death. 

Hurrah!  Hurrah!  Hurrah! 

Unsheathe  thee  then,  thou  treasure, 
Of  soldier-eyes  the  pleasure ; 
Come  forth,  my  Sword,  come  forth, 
On !  to  the  father's  hearth  ! 

Hurrah  !  Hurrah  !  Hurrah ! 

Aha !  the  glorious  wedding, 
Here  through  the  free  air  treading  ! 
How  flames  in  sunshine  bright, 
The  steel  so  bridal  white ! 

Hurrah  !  Hurrah !  Hurrah  ! 

On,  on,  ye  brave  contenders  ! 
Ye  German  true  defenders ! 
And  if  your  hearts  be  cold, 
The  loved-one  to  them  hold ! 

Hurrah!  Hurrah!  Hurrah! 

While  on  the  left  side  sitting, 
Shy  are  her  looks  and  flitting  ; 
But  on  the  right,  the  bride 
Trusts  God  in  all  her  pride. 

Hurrah!  Hurrah!  Hurrah! 

To  iron  mouth  love-glowing, 
The  bridal  kiss  bestowing, 
Be  every  lip  applied  ; 
Curst  he  who  leaves  the  bride ! 

Hurrah !  Hurrah !  Hurrah  ! 

Now  let  the  loved-one  sing  forth ! 
The  dazzling  flashes  spring  forth  ! 
Fast  dawns  the  marriage  tide, 
Hurrah,  thou  Iron  Bride ! 

Hurrah !  Hurrah !  Hurrah  ! 


64  THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT. 

The  battle  of  the  people  at  Leipsic,  in  the  year  1814,  freed 
Germany  from  its  chains.  For  the  complete  liberation  of 
Europe,  and  for  the  restoration  of  state  relations  on  a  firm 
foundation,  a  Congress  was  determined  upon,  which  in  the  same 
year  was  held  in  Vienna.  The  task  which  this  congress  had 
to  discharge  was  the  more  difficult,  in  that  the  people,  inspired 
with  a  new  spirit,  in  the  consciousness  of  the  mighty  exertions 
that  they  had  made,  cherished  hopes  and  desires  whose  realiza- 
tion did  not  coincide  with  the  interests  of  Princes.  The  settle- 
ment of  territorial  relations,  and  organization  of  a  new  general 
constitution  for  all  Germany,  engrossed  its  deliberations.  The 
restoration  of  the  German  empire,  which  was  demanded  by  a 
majority  of  voices,  was  rendered  impossible  by  the  jealousy  on 
the  part  of  the  kings  of  the  Rhine-league  of  their  sovereignties. 
As  those  states  which  had  sprung  up  and  become  great  under 
the  former  German  empire,  were  now  become  independent, 
there  remained  no  alternative,  if  they  were  to  submit  themselves 
anew  to  a  paternal  authority,  but,  instead  of  the  old  German 
empire,  to  substitute  a  sort  of  family  compact.  The  return  of 
Napoleon  hastened  the  settlement  of  the  fundamental  principles 
of  a  German  international-compact ;  and  after  eleven  sittings,  on 
the  8th  of  June,  1815,  the  Bundes-Acte,  or  Act  of  Convention, 
was  signed  and  published. 

With  the  rising  of  the  people  against  Napoleon,  a  greater  life 
and  cordiality  of  religious  faith  had  come  back.  This  expressed 
itself  in  the  Holy  Alliance.  For  the  maintenance  of  European 
peace,  the  three  powers — Austria,  Russia,  and  Prussia — not 
only  renewed  their  alliance,  but  based  it  again  upon  a  religious 
foundation.  On  the  26th  Sept.  1815,  the  Holy  Alliance  was 
concluded  by  the  three  monarchs  themselves,  without  assistance 
or  advice  of  a  minister.  By  this  they  bound  themselves,  the 
contracting  parties,  both  in  the  management  of  their  kingdoms 
and  in  their  transactions  with  other  states,  to  take  alone  as  their 
guides  the  precepts  of  the  Christian  religion,  the  commands  of 
justice,  of  love,  and  peace.  They  expressed  a  firm  resolution, 
in  accordance  with  the  Sacred  Writings,  to  continue  in  the 
covenant  of  a  true  and  indissoluble  brotherly  love ;  that  national 


THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT.  65 

divisions  and  national  animosity  should  thenceforward  retreat 
before  the  consideration  that  their  people  were  the  common 
members  of  one  and  the  same  Christian  empire ;  the  princes 
themselves  should  acknowledge  that  the  great  Christian  nation 
to  which  they  and  their  people  belonged,  had  in  reality  no  other 
rulers  than  Him  from  whom  alone  power  doth  proceed,  that  is 
God,  and  the  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  At  the  same  time  were  all 
states  solicited  to  give  in  their  concurrence,  and  were  assured 
that  on  recognition  of  these  avowed  principles  of  this  Alliance, 
with  alacrity  and  love  they  would  be  received  into  the  sacred 
covenant.  The  Holy  Alliance  found  numerous  participants. 
Most  of  the  European  states  sent  in  their  formal  adhesion  in  the 
course  of  the  year  1816.  One  might  imagine  that  all  parties — 
princes  and  people — were  about  to  co-operate  in  the  sentiment 
so  finely  expressed  in  Arndt's  famous  song — 

THE  GERMAN'S  FATHERLAND. 

Which  is  the  German's  Fatherland  ; 
Is't  Prussian-land  7  Is't  Swabian-land  ? 
Is't  where  on  Rhine  the  red  grapes  hang? 
Where  o'er  the  Baltic  sea-mews  clang  ? 

Oh  no !  oh  no !  oh  no !  oh  no ! 

His  Fatherland  must  wider  go ! 

Which  is  the  German's  Fatherland  1 
Is't  Styrian,  or  Bavarian  land  1 
Is't  where  the  M  arson's  herds  do  wind  !* 
Fst  where  the  Markers  iron  find  f 
Oh  no !  etc. 

Which  is  the  German's  Fatherland  ? 
Westphalian,  or  Pomerian  land  1 
Is't  where  the  sand  from  sea-down  blows  ? 
Is't  where  the  Danube  foaming  flows  ? 
Oh  no !  etc. 

Which  is  the  German's  Fatherland ! 
So  name  to  me  the  mighty  land. 

»  Inhabitants  of  the  Marsch.  t  In  the  Graffschaft  Mark. 

6* 


66  THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT. 

The  land  of  Hofer?— or  of  Tell  ? 
Both  land  and  people  love  I  well. 
Oh  no !  etc. 

Which  is  the  German's  Fatherland  ? 
So  name  to  me  that  mighty  land. 
The  Austrian  land  it  sure  must  be, 
With  glory  crowned  and  victory  ! 
Oh  no !  etc. 

Which  is  the  German's  Fatherland  ? 
So  name  to  me  that  mighty  land. 
Is't  what  the  Princes'  hollow  theft, 
From  Emperor  and  from  Empire  reft? 
Oh  no !  etc. 

Which  is  the  German's  Fatherland  ? 
So  name  me  finally  that  land ! 
Wide  as  the  German  free  tongue  springs, 
And  hymns  to  God  in  heaven  sings  ! 

That  shall  it  be !  that  shall  it  be  ! 

That  land  brave  German's  giv'n  to  thee ! 

That  is  the  German's  Fatherland, 
Where  oaths  are  sworn  by  grasp  of  hand ; 
Where  in  all  eyes  clear  truth  doth  shine ; 
Where  in  warm  hearts  sits  love  benign. 
That  shall  it  be!  etc. 

That  is  the  German's  Fatherland, 
Where  foreign  folly  scorn  doth  brand  ; 
Where  all  that's  base  'neath  hate  must  bend ; 
Where  all  that's  noble  name  we  Friend. 

That  shall  it  be !  that  shall  it  be  ! 

That  whole,  the  German  land  shall  be  ! 

That  whole,  the  German  land  shall  be ! 
O  God  of  Heaven  !  hither  see ! 
And  give  us  genuine  German  soul, 
That  we  may  love  it  high  and  whole. 
That  shall  it  be  !  etc. 

But  with  the  peace  which  succeeded  the  second  overthrow  of 
Napoleon,  the  expectations  of  the   German  nation   began  to 


THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT.  67 

exhibit  themselves  more  clearly;  and  out  of  the  disproportion 
between  them  and  that  which  was  done  to  satisfy  them,  sprang 
the  germs  of  mistrust  between  the  princes  and  the  people.  The 
opening  of  the  Bundesversammlung,  or  confederated  assem- 
bly, Nov.  5,  1816,  betrayed  not  only  the  imperfection  of  the 
constitution,  which  had  been  thrown  together  in  a  hurry,  but 
also  the  uncertainty  of  the  assembly  itself,  of  the  extent  of  its 
delegated  powers.  Its  declaration  that  Germany  was  not  to 
be  considered  as  a  united  state,  but  as  a  confederation  of  states 
— (nicht  als  ein  Bundesstaat,  sondern  als  ein  Staaten-bund) — 
gave  the  less  satisfaction,  as  it  was  just  contrary  to  what  was 
desired.  The  nation  desired  earnestly  a  common  all-embracing 
bond  of  union  and  communion,  and  not  merely  a  confederacy 
of  their  sovereign  princes,  which  the  interests  of  the  moment,  as 
they  had  originated  it,  would  also  dissolve  again. 

The  general  excitement  in  Germany  received  a  palpable 
point  of  demand  in  the  thirteenth  article  of  the  Act  of  Confede- 
ration. In  most  of  the  German  states  the  anxiety  for  a  repre- 
sentative constitution  displayed  itself  in  such  a  manner  as 
rendered  in  the  highest  degree  difficult  an  accordance  between 
princes  and  subjects. 

In  Prussia  especially,  the  constitution  of  the  monarchy  op- 
posed so  many  difficulties  to  the  establishment  of  a  national 
representation,  that  its  postponement  was  inevitable ;  and  pas- 
sionate discontent  saw  in  the  impracticability  nothing  but  an 
evil  disposition.  In  the  other  German  states,  the  steps  made 
towards  the  passing  of  a  constitution  conducted  to  as  little 
result ;  the  princes  and  popular  representatives  could  not  agree, 
since  the  first  were  as  sparing  in  their  concessions  as  the  latter 
were  unbounded  in  their  demands.  But  the  spirit  which  was 
in  Germany  striving  after  the  constitutional  organization  of 
states,  had  not  every  where  confined  itself  within  due  bounds. 
The  secret  unions  which  were  formed  during  the  ascendency 
of  Napoleon  still  continued.  The  excitement  of  the  public 
mind,  which  at  an  earlier  period  had  been  favoured  even  by 
the  government  itself,  so  far  from  having  subsided,  had  rather 


68  THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT. 

received  a  new  impulse,  and  as  it  had  now  necessarily  lost  its 
outward  tendency,  it  sought  to  take  effect  in  the  heart  of 
Germany.  The  government  saw  with  suspicion  the  drift  of  the 
secret  unions,  and  their  influence  on  the  Gymnastic  schools 
and  universities ;  they  heard  with  astonishment,  the  bold  lan- 
guage of  the  rising  generation  approximating  itself  to  political 
fanaticism.  The  German  Confederation  satisfied  not  these 
heads  on  fire  with  ideas  of  one  and  a  free  Germany.  The 
restoration  of  the  empire,  in  connexion  with  one  of  the  prevail- 
ing theories  of  conformable  national  representation,  was  the 
master  desire  of  a  numerous  party,  which  was  spread  wide 
through  Germany,  and  rendered  the  universities  the  seminaries 
of  their  doctrines.  The  youth  entered  with  pride  into  the  idea, 
that  they  were  called  to  work  out  their  salvation,  from  the  cir- 
cumstances to  which  their  fathers  had  reduced  them.  Political 
notions  of  the  Middle  Ages  mingled  themselves  in  the  heads  of 
the  student  youth,  with  the  revolutionary  doctrines  of  modern 
times,  and  received,  moreover,  from  religious  enthusiasm,  a 
dark  addition.  Thus  degenerated  the  Burschenschaft,  in  a 
manner  most  deeply  to  be  deplored,  and  demonstrated  in  a  me- 
lancholy degree  how  near  to  each  other  lie  the  boundaries  of 
truth  and  falsehood.  Noble  patriotism  metamorphosed  itself 
into  a  gloomy  fanaticism, — zeal  for  religion  and  morals,  into 
a  hollow  hypocrisy,  and  into  a  still  more  dangerous  pseudo- 
philosophy.  The  landsmannschafts  became  continually  weaker 
in  the  German  universities,  and  the  young  men  every  day 
added  themselves  to  the  burschenschaft  in  greater  numbers. 
Truly  the  greater  number  of  them  never  dreamed  to  what 
lengths  such  a  political  fanaticism  could  lead  them ;  and  only 
by  degrees  and  unobserved  mounted  the  arrogance  of  an  incon- 
siderate youth,  till  at  length  it  persuaded  itself  that  it  alone  had 
fought  out  the  liberation  war,  and  therefore  was  now  called  to 
give  to  Fatherland  a  new  constitution. 

These  perilous  imaginations  grew  continually  faster  and 
faster  into  that  horrible  avalanche  which  threatened  to  over- 
whelm every  thing.  What  a  difference  between  the  years 


THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT.  69 

1816  and  1817,  when  one  compares  the  celebration  of  the 
peace  anniversary  of  1816,  with  that  of  the  celebration  of  the 
October  days  of  1817! 

On  the  18th,  19th,  and  20th  of  January,  1816,  Jena,  amongst 
other  universities,  celebrated  the  peace-festival  in  a  style  and 
manner,  which,  say  the  newspapers  of  the  time,  deserve  to  be 
published  and  handed  down  to  posterity. 

The  report  of  this  festival  stands  thus : — On  the  16th  day 
of  January  was  issued  from  the  grand-ducal  police  commis- 
sion, and  the  city  council  of  Jena,  a  public  programme  in 
regard  to  this  festival.  In  pursuance  of  its  ordinations,  on  the 
17th,  all  the  bells  were  rung  at  noon.  Before  and  after  the 
ringing,  mortars  and  cannon  were  fired  at  the  outer  gate. 
At  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening  the  Landsturm  beat  tattoo  with 
music. 

On  4he  18th,  in  the  morning,  solemn  music  sounded  from 
the  towers,  with  drum  and  trumpet,  and  firing  of  cannon.  At 
nine  o'clock  assembled  at  the  council-house,  the  clergy,  the 
city  authorities,  and  the  elder  burgers  not  belonging  to  the 
Landsturm,  whither  also  an  hour  later  proceeded  the  whole 
body  of  school  youth  with  their  teachers.  At  ten  o'clock, 
the  assembled  company  moved  thence  in  procession  to  the 
city  church.  A  division  of  the  Landsturm,  as  the  procession 
arrived  before  the  church,  made  way  for  it.  Behind  this  division 
walked,  as  leader  of  the  whole  procession,  the  depositor,  or 
master  of  the  ceremonies,  in  a  black  dress,  and  next  to  him 
went  the  academical  officials.  Behind  these  came  two  beadles, 
with  silver  sceptres,  and  cloaks  of  red  cloth,  preceding  the  then 
prorector  regens,  Herr  Hofrath  Dr.  Seidenstecker,  the  pro- 
rector  being,  however,  as  well  as  the  prorector  designatus, 
Herr  Hofrath  Dr.  Voigt,  who  followed  him,  supported  by 
two  students.  To  the  prorectors  succeeded  the  deacons  of  the 
four  faculties,  two  and  two,  and  then  followed  the  senate,  the 
professors,  the  docenten,  and  the  students,  whose  banner  was 
borne  before  them.  As  the  train  came  in  front  of  the  council- 
house,  that  of  the  city  authorities  joined  it  and  proceeded  with 
it  to  the  church,  in  which  each  party  took  their  respective 


70  THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT. 

seats.  A  second  division  of  the  Landsturm  brought  up  the  rear 
of  the  train.  All  conducted  themselves  with  the  decorum  and 
dignity  befitting  this  day,  and  the  appearance  of  the  whole 
congregation  excited  a  lively  feeling  of  something  high  and 
important. 

When  the  service  was  concluded,  the  train  quitted  the  church 
in  the  same  order  in  which  it  had  entered  it.  At  the  council- 
house,  the  procession  of  the  city  authorities,  and  those  who  had 
joined  them,  separated  from  that  of  the  academicians,  who  di- 
rected their  course  again  to  the  university,  where  they  broke  off. 

The  students  now  betook  themselves  to  the  market-place,  and 
after  the  public  appointed  religious  service  which  they  had  just 
attended,  performed  a  private  act  of  devotion,  which  in  its  sim- 
plicity and  unostentatiousness  was  extremely  striking  and  affect- 
ing. Ranged  in  a  circle,  the  banner  and  the  leaders  of  the  pro- 
cession in  its  centre  with  uncovered  heads,  they  sung  a  hymn, 
written  for  the  occasion  by  Herr  Ullmann  of  Liefland,  with 
such  truth  and  depth  of  feeling,  that  Herr  Hofrath  Gabler,  who 
with  other  professors,  was  present  at  this  solemnity,  seized  with 
enthusiastic  emotion  by  its  power,  thanked  the  students  with 
heart-enkindled  words  for  the  elevation  of  soul  that  they  had 
occasioned.  A  beautiful  conclusion  of  all  the  religious  and 
public  solemnities  of  this  day !  for  that  many  houses  in  the 
evening,  especially  in  the  market-place,  were  found  illuminated, 
was  rather  a  testimony  of  individual  joy,  which  took  this  way 
to  display  itself. 

The  following  day,  the  19th  of  January,  only  was  left  to  the 
students  to  make  their  arrangements  for  their  peace  anniversary. 
And  now  once  more,  in  how  German,  how  brave,  how  noble 
a  style  was  every  festive  preparation  completed  ! 

In  the  Rau-Thal,  through  which  the  haughty  enemy  of  the 
German  name  had  formerly  led  his  robber-horde  to  victory,  an 
Oak  was  selected,  that,  the  witness  of  former  overthrow,  it  might 
now,  as  a  memorial  of  the  achieved  liberty  of  Germany — of  new 
flourishing  man's  strength,  be  planted  on  that  spot  which,  ten 
years  before,  on  the  most  unfortunate  of  all  days,  covered  with 
rubbish  and  ashes,  had  been  consecrated  to  a  dreadful  remem- 


THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT.  71 

brance.  On  the  morning  of  the  19th,  the  oak  was  taken  from 
its  old  location,  and  towards  noon  brought  to  the  city,  where  it 
was  received  by  the  students  with  joyful  hearts,  and  in  proces- 
sion of  two  and  two,  conducted  with  music  to  the  square,  the 
scene  of  former  desolation.  On  the  platz,  a  division  of  the 
Landsturm  had  stationed  itself,  and  assisted  to  form  the  circle ; 
a  division  of  the  mounted  Landsturm  had  ridden  in  advance  of 
the  tree,  A  vast  body  of  spectators  stood  round  the  platz !  many 
of  the  professors,  and  those  who  took  interest  in  the  scene,  sta- 
tioned themselves  near  the  oak. 

When  all  was  ready  for  the  planting  of  the  oak,  a  hymn 
composed  for  the  occasion  by  Herr  Goering,  from  Weimar,  to 
a  tune  furnished  by  Herr  Cotta,  of  Eisenach,  was  sung  by  the 
students,  fervently  and  solemnly,  with  uncovered  heads  as  on 
the  day  before ;  then  stepped  Herr  Horn  of  Mechlenberg  forth 
from  the  inner  circle,  and  delivered  a  pregnant  and  powerful 
speech  with  equal  animation  and  grace.  The  attention  and 
silence  of  the  vast  throng  of  spectators  during  the  delivery  of 
this  speech,  testified  the  impression  it  produced,  to  say  nothing 
of  its  subsequent  influence.  The  speech  ended ;  the  planting  of 
the  oak  was  performed,  accompanied  by  the  singing  of  a  hymn, 
also  composed  by  Herr  Goering,  to  a  tune  by  Herr  Cotta.  The 
professors  present  testified  their  interest  and  delight  in  the  trans- 
action, by  each  of  them  scattering  three  handfuls  of  earth  on  the 
roots  of  the  planted  oak.  But  numbers  of  the  maidens  and 
young  ladies  bound  ribands  on  the  significant  tree,  eloquent  with 
so  many  significations,  thereby  proclaiming  the  strength,  the 
desires,  the  sentiments,  and  hopes  of  their  hearts. 

As  now  the  oak,  to  which  we  will  all  wish  a  joyful  and  pros- 
perous growth,  especially  in  its  national  indications,  was  planted, 
Herr  Horn  pronounced  the  iambics  written  for  the  occasion  by 
Herr  Ullmann,  with  the  tone  and  feeling  appropriate  to  their 
office  and  contents.  The  whole  transaction  was  concluded  by 
the  singing  of  hymns,  composed  by  Herr  Neidhart,  the  elder  of 
Ebersdorf  in  Voigtland,  and  breathing  a  noble,  powerful  spirit, 
for  right  and  freedom,  which  animated  the  whole  nation,  and 
in  its  own  language  awarded  to  the  festival  its  high  and  sig- 


72  THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT. 

nificant  value.  The  occasion  thus  brought  to  its  close — a  solem- 
nity which  our  grandchildren  may  well  hold  sacred — the  stu- 
dents marched  in  procession  of  two  to  the  market-place,  where 
they  excited  one  another  in  brotherly  union,  with  Arndt's  thrill- 
ing hymn,  to  unity  of  spirit  and  faithful  confidence  in  the  senti- 
ments then  and  there  implanted. 


THE  UNION  SONG. 

In  happy  hour  have  we  united, 

A  mighty  and  a  German  choir ! 
And  hence  from  every  soul  excited, 

Burst  hymns  of  praise  to  God  once  more  ; 
Since  we  stand  here  o'er  high  things  musing, 

With  feelings  holy  and  profound, 
So  the  full  heart  its  joy  diffusing, 

Must  swell  with  all  its  chords  the  sound. 

To  whom  shall  first  our  thanks  be  pealed  ] 

To  God's  most  high  and  wondrous  name, 
Who  in  our  shame's  long  night  revealed, 

Arose  before  us  all  in  flame. 
Who  blasted  all  our  foes'  disdaining ; 

Our  strength  and  beauty  all  restored  ; 
Who  on  the  stars  for  ever  reigning, 

Sits  there  from  age  to  age  adored. 

Our  second  wish — to  whom  then  flies  it? 

To  Fatherland's  high  glory  whole. 
Perdition  seize  all  who  despise  it, 

Hail !  he  who  yields  it  life  and  soul ! 
Through  virtues  pass  it  still  be-wondered ; 

Beloved  for  honesty  and  right, 
Proud  from  year-hundred  to  year-hundred, 

In  strength  and  honour  ever  bright. 

To  joys  of  German  men, — a  measure  ! 

One  third — in  clearer  joy  and  thanks; 
For  freedom  is  the  German  pleasure ; 

For  freedom  leads  our  German  ranks. 


THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT.  73 

For  it  to  live,  for  it  to  perish, — 

Each  German  bosom  burns  for  this ; 
For  this  the  hero-death  to  cherish, 

Is  German  honour,  German  bliss. 

The  fourth — in  solemn  consecration, — 

Hands,  hearts  aloft  together  go !         * 
Thou  ancient  truth — and  of  our  nation, 

Thou  faith,  united — "  live  ye  hoch !" 
With  these  all  doubts  and  fears  we  banish, 

These  of  our  bond  are  rock  and  shield ; 
The  world  indeed  itself  must  vanish, 

When  men  their  plighted  word  shall  yield. 

Close  in, — the  sacred  circle  throng  now, 

And  raise  the  clash  of  triumph  strong; 
From  heart  to  heart,  from  tongue  to  tongue  now, 

Like  lightning  send  this  joyful  song: — 
The  WORD  that  knits  our  bond  for  ever ; 

The  GOOD  no  fiend  can  from  us  rend, — 
Nor  tyrant  villany  can  sever, — 

Believe  ! — maintain  it  to  the  end  ! 


The  afternoon  and  evening  were  dedicated  by  them  to 
joyous  entertainment  at  the  Feurslenkeller,  and  with  testimo- 
nies of  love  and  respect  towards  their  teachers,  that  remarkable 
and  distinguished  day  terminated.  The  sacred  celebration  of 
the  peace-festival  on  the  part  of  the  university,  was  held  on 
Sunday,  the  21st  February.  The  church  service  itself  was 
very  simple,  but  highly  solemn,  and  worthy  of  the  high  thoughts 
which  the  celebration  of  such  a  day  could  not  fail  to  call  forth. 
There  remained  nothing  to  desire,  but  that  the  noble  spirit  and 
sterling  sentiments  which  had  every  where  displayed  themselves 
so  luminously  on  that  day,  should  continue  to  be  the  universal 
ruling  ones. 

So  details  a  newspaper  of  the  time,  the  celebration  of  this 
beautiful  festival.  But  the  concluding  wish  found  not  its  fulfil- 
ment in  the  following  year — for  in  the  year  1817  was  held  the 
festival  on  the  Wartburg ;  in  the  next  year  the  congress  of  the 

7 


74  THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT. 

Burschenschaft  at  Jena;  and  in  1819  transpired  the  "bloody 
deed  of  Sand,  a  warning  sign  of  the  progress  of  political  fana- 
ticism from  its  innocent  commencement,  to  that  act  which 
found  its  just  reward  on  the  scaffold. 

In  the  year  1817  the  celebration  of  the  reformation  anni- 
versary falling  in.  conjunction  with  the  anniversary  of  the 
Leipsic  Folksbattle,  it  was  too  exciting  an  occasion  for  the 
young  state  reformers  not  to  seize  on  it  for  the  demonstration 
of  their  views  and  aims.  The  festival  was  therefore  celebrated 
on  the  18th  of  October,  by  the  students  of  most  of  the  German 
universities  on  the  Wartburg,  in  a  manner  which  quickly 
excited  the  attention  of  the  governments.  The  Prussian  go- 
vernment, in  particular,  ordered  the  trial  of  all  those  who  had 
taken  part  in  the  festival;  and  several  professors  who  had  been 
present,  particularly  Fries,  came  under  judicial  examination. 
From  these  trials  it  was  made  obvious  that  the  few  only  were 
in  the  secret  of  the  proposed  auto-da-fe  to  be  held  in  Eisenach, 
but  that  the  majority  regarded  it  as  a  desirable  opportunity  for 
drawing  the  Burschenschaft  into  a  more  intimate  and  close 
union,  so  that  it  might  the  more  powerfully  operate  against  the 
landsmanschafts. 

The  festival  was,  like  the  prior  one  of  October,  celebrated 
with  much  enthusiasm,  with  sacred  service,  with  singing  of 
Fatherland  hymns,  and  other  solemnities:  but  speeches  were 
delivered,  on  this  occasion,  which  had  not  a  thoroughly  correct 
tendency,  and  must  appear  the  more  unfitting  from  the  mouth 
of  a  teacher  of  youth.  On  the  evening  of  the  18th  of  October, 
as  formerly  on  that  night,  fires  blazed  up  on  every  hill  top ;  but 
those  of  the  Burschenschaft  who  had  stationed  themselves 
around  the  fire  on  the  Wartburg,  cast  into  the  flames  the 
German  History  of  Kotzebue,  as  well  as  some  other  detested 
writings.  None  of  the  professors,  however,  were  present  at 
this  transaction,  and  none  of  the  speeches  connected  therewith 
were  delivered  by  them.  That  the  acts  of  the  Congress  of 
Vienna  had  been  also  burnt  there,  was  proved  by  the  inquiry  to 
be  false. 

The  Wartburg  festival  was  concluded  on  the  19th  of  October 


THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT.  75 

by  the  assembled  participants,  to  the  number  of  about  600, 
taking  the  sacrament  in  the  church.  The  consequence  of  this 
festival  was  the  promotion  of  the  idea  here  conceived,  of  one 
universal  German  Burschenschaft ;  that  the  union  of  the  whole 
body  of  student  youth  must  pervade,  and  be  the  means  of 
working  out,  the  union  of  the  whole  Fatherland. 

On  the  21st  of  October,  1818,  at  Jena,  a  congress  of  students, 
from  fourteen  universities,  was  held ;  then  and  there  the  union 
of  the  Burschenschafts  was  discussed,  and  its  constitution  esta- 
blished. "  One  Empire,  one  Religion,  Freedom  and  Equality !" 
This  was  the  watchword  of  the  combination,  which,  since  the 
Wartburg  festival,  had  exchanged  its  former  colours,  namely, 
green,  blue,  and  white,  for  the  union  badge,  black,  red,  and  a 
metallic  or  embroidered  oak  leaf  in  the  cap.  To  this  circum- 
stance alludes  the  following  celebrated  song — 


ARE  GERMAN  HEARTS. 

Are  German  hearts  with  strength  and  courage  beating  ? 

There  to  the  clang  of  beakers  gleams  the  sword, 
And  true  and  steadfast  in  our  place  of  meeting, 
We  peal  aloud  in  song  the  fiery  word ! 

Though  rocks  and  oak  trees  shiver, 
We,  we  will  tremble  never  ! 
Strong  like  the  tempest  see  the  youths  go  by, 
For  Fatherland  to  combat  and  to  die ! 

Red,  red  as  true-love,  be  the  brother  token, 
And  pure  like  gold  the  soul  within  imprest, 

And  that  in  death  our  spirits  be  not  broken, 
Black  be  the  ribbon  bound  about  the  breast. 
Though  rocks,  etc. 

We  know  the  strength  in  honest  swords  residing, 
Bold  is  the  brow,  and  strong  the  arm  to  smite ; 

We  fail  not,  faint  not,  in  the  right  confiding, 
When  calls  the  Fatherland  his  sons  to  fight. 
Though  rocks,  etc. 


76  THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT. 

So,  on  the  German  sword,  to  this  alliance, 
.  In  life  and  death  let  solemn  faith  be  vow'd  ! 
Up,  Brothers,  up !  the  Fatherland's  reliance, 
And  to  the  blood-red  morning  cry  aloud. 

Though  rocks,  etc. 

And  thou,  Beloved,  who  in  hours  the  dearest, 
Hast  nerved  thy  friend  with  many  a  look  and  tone, 

For  thee  my  heart  will  beat  when  death  comes  nearest, 
For  unto  true  love  change  is  never  known. 

Though  rocks,  etc. 

And  now,  since  fate  may  tear  us  from  each  other, 

Let  each  man  grasp  of  each  the  brother-hand, 
And  swear  once  more,  O  every  German  Brother, 
Truth  to  the  bond,  truth  to  the  Fatherland  ! 
Though  rocks  and  oak-trees  shiver, 
We,  we  will  tremble  never ! 
Strong  like  the  tempest  see  the  youths  go  by, 
For  Fatherland  to  combat  and  to  die ! 


The  laws  of  the  Burschenschaft,  or  its  constitution,  bore  the 
name — "  Custom  of  the  Burschenschaft."  Amongst  other  things 
stand  the  following : 

"  In  the  German  Fatherland  we  will  live  and  move.  We 
will  perish  with  it,  or  die  free  in  it,  if  God's  great  call  ordain. 
Live  the  German  speech  for  ever !  Flourish  the  true  chivalry ! 
Let  Germany  be  free  ! 

"  He  who  avows  these  ideas,  and  is  willing  to  contend  for 
their  advancement,  is  our  beloved  brother.  To  accomplish 
these  high  endeavours,  there  must  be  a  universal  free  Burschen- 
schaft throughout  all  Germany. 

"  There  can  no  salvation  come  to  our  beloved  Germany 
unless  through  such  a  free  and  universal  Burschenschaft,  in 
which  Germany's  noblest  youth  continues  intimately  fraternized, 
in  which  every  one  learns  to  know  his  duty — and  which  Bur- 
schenschaft shall  always  find  the  Gymnastic  schools  its  defence 
and  alarm-post. 


THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT.  77 

"  We  will  never  apply  the  word  Fatherland  to  that  state  in 
which  we  were  born :  Germany  is  our  Fatherland ;  the  state  in 
which  we  are  born  is  our  Home. 

"  We  will  hold  these  principles  firmly  and  honourably ;  spread 
them  by  every  possible  means ;  and  with  all  our  power,  now 
as  youths,  and  hereafter  as  men,  labour  to  bring  them  into 
exercise. 

"  When  we  quit  the  High  School,  and  are  invested  with  any 
office,  be  it  high  or  low,  we  will  fulfil  the  same  honourably,  true 
to  Prince  and  Fatherland,  and  in  such  a  manner  administer  it 
as  shall  be  in  accordance  with  the  spirit  of  these  principles. 

*'  The  law  of  the  people  shall  be  the  will  of  the  Prince. 
Liberty  and  Equality  are  the  highest  good ;  after  which  we 
have  to  strive,  and  from  which  strift  no  pious  and  honest  Ger- 
man can  ever  desist. 

"  Every  student  who  maintains  honour  and  virtue,  shall  be  a 
free  German  Bursche :  subject  to  no  one ;  inferior  to  no  one ; 
all  shall  be  equal,  obeying  only  the  laws." 

From  this  time  forward  the  union  laboured  actively  at  throw- 
ing out  and  determining  the  principles  of  a  future  civil  and  eccle- 
siastical constitution  for  Germany,  and  in  the  dissemination  of 
revolutionary  writings.  But  unfortunately,  as  in  all  times  of 
high  excitement,  spirits  of  a  reckless  and  darker  character  min- 
gled themselves  with  the  nobler  ones  of  liberty :  for  the  realiza- 
tion of  their  intrinsically  criminal  wishes,  criminal  means  also 
were  necessary,  and  the  spirit  of  youth  was  thus  unconsciously 
conducted  by  fanaticism  into  unhallowed  and  bloodthirsty  prin- 
ciples, and  in  the  bosom  of  the  Burschenschaft  union,  formed 
itself  a  closer  union  of  The  Unrestricted,  whose  name  revealed 
sufficiently,  that  they  would  hesitate  at  no  means  by  which  they 
might  arrive  at  their  object.  The  misguided  and  blamable 
tendency  of  this  spirit,  to  the  horror  of  many  who  unconsciously 
implicated  themselves  in  its  criminal  proceedings,  was  brought 
to  light  by  some  striking  circumstances.  On  the  23d  of  March, 
1819,  the  student  Sand  murdered  the  Russian  Counsellor  of 
State,  Von  Kotzebue,  on  no  other  ground  than  that  he  held  him 
to  be  a  spy  of  the  Russian  government,  and  an  enemy  of  German 

7* 


78  THE  BURSCHENSCHAFT. 

liberty.  He  undertook  the  action  with  the  full  persuasion  that 
it  was  a  just  and  noble  deed,  and  his  trial  revealed  the  horrible 
gulf  of  political  immorality,  unto  the  very  brink  of  which  was 
brought  the  youth  of  Germany.  A  somewhat  particular  account 
of  this  transaction,  and  of  the  circumstances  of  Sand's  life,  may 
fittingly  here  find  a  place :  and  which  may  be  relied  on,  being 
derived  from  the  relation  published  by  the  President  of  the  Com- 
mission for  the  trial  of  Sand,  the  State  Counsellor,  Von  Hohen- 
horst  himself. 


CHAPTER  V. 


KARL   LTJDWIG   SAND. 

KARL  LUDWIG  SAND  was  born  at  Wunsiedel,  a  little  town  in 
the  district  of  Baireuth,  lying  in  the  Fichtel  Mountains,  on  the 
5th  of  October,  1795.  His  father  was  pensionary  officer  of 
justice; 'and  the  family,  which  consisted  of  three  sons  and  two 
daughters,  lived  in  the  most  delightful  domestic  harmony.  Sand 
grew  up  in  his  paternal  city,  under  the  most  careful  guidance 
of  his  parents,  whose  good  and  thorough  education,  and  moral 
training,  such  are  his  own  words,  in  comparison  with  that  of 
many,  he  never  was  able  sufficiently  to  praise.  There  lay  in 
him  the  strongest  and  most  delightful  recollection  of  his  birth- 
place. Its  very  situation,  he  asserted,  in  the  bosom  of  noble 
mountains,  in  the  midst  of  the  great  Fatherland,  had  wrought 
powerfully  upon  his  disposition  of  mind,  which,  especially  since 
much  sickness  in  his  early  youth,  had  always  been  very  still. 
In  truth,  Sand  passed  his  years  of  childhood  in  great  weakness 
and  many  bodily  ailments.  In  his  seventh  year  he  took  natu- 
rally the  small-pox,  and  of  a  very  bad  kind,  which  left  behind 
them  serious  effects,  especially  a  dangerous  ulcer  in  the  head, 
of  which  the  grisly  scars  always  continued  visible.  On  that 
account  the  physicians  forbade  all  mental  exercise,  and  his  proper 
instruction  could  only  be  commenced  at  home  in  his  tenth  year. 
His  father  explained,  that  a  dejection  of  mind  which  long  clung 
to  him  was  a  consequence  of  the  weakness  which  these  com- 
plaints had  left  upon ;  and  therefore,  where  parents  in  general 


80  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

would  put  restraint  on  young  people  of  lively  temperament,  he, 
on  the  contrary,  had  always  been  anxious  that  his  son's  dispo- 
sition should  not  be  further  depressed.  After  Sand  had  received 
his  first  instruction  from  the  tutor,  he  was  sent  to  the  Lyceum, 
in  Wunsiedel.  He  afterwards  followed  his  teacher  to  the  Gym- 
nasium in  Hof,  there  acquired  the  first  elements  of  general  edu- 
cation, and  proceeded  in  the  study  of  ancient  languages.  Even 
at  this  early  period  he  entertained  a  vehement  hatred  to  the 
French.  As  in  the  spring  of  1812  a  great  military  train  passed 
through  Hof,  he  would  neither  see  the  march  of  the  French  nor 
especially  Napoleon,  since  he  believed  that  he  could  not  endure 
to  be  in  the  presence  of  the  archenemy  of  his  native  land,  with- 
out an  attempt  to  rush  upon  him  and  destroy  him. 

He  returned  thence  to  his  parents,  with  whom  he  continued 
till  they  resolved  to  send  him  to  Regensburg,  where  he  pro- 
ceeded towards  the  end  of  the  year  1812,  with  his  tutor  Saal- 
franc,  and  always  called  to  mind  with  extreme  pleasure  his 
abode  there.  The  testimonies  of  his  life  and  habits  during  his 
sojourn  in  Hof  and  Regensburg,  are  greatly  to  his  credit.  His 
good  capacity,  his  restless  diligence,  his  deep  study,  and  not 
less  his  highly  moral  conduct,  were  greatly  applauded.  In  his 
18th  year  awoke  in  Sand  the  resolve  to  co-operate  in  doing 
battle  with  the  common  foe  of  his  country.  He  may  speak  for 
himself. 

"  As  in  the  spring  of  1813  the  French  fled  homewards,  and 
Germany  began  to  rouse  itself  to  take  vengeance  for  the  shame 
inflicted  on  it,  there  awoke  in  me  a  new-born  joy,  a  fresh  mind, 
a  new  life ;  and  from  that  hour  I  doubted  no  more  of  a  com- 
plete liberation  from  the  old  slavery,  although  the  heavens 
became  so  unpropitious  to  the  Germans.  With  eager  heart 
and  yet  with  all  possible  circumspection,  I  lived  in  the  news- 
papers of  the  time;  and  in  the  autumn  of  1813,  which  I  spent 
at  home,  I  obtained  the  permission  to  join  myself  to  the  host 
of  Germany,  when  in  the  mean  time,  came  the  intelligence  of 
the  battle  of  Leipsic,  which  rendered  my  going  forth  unneces- 
sary." 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  81 

Sand  returned  once  more  to  Regensburg,  and  proceeded 
thence  to  the  university  of  Tubingen.  Here  he  passed  quietly 
the  winter  half-year  of  1814-15,  and  had  begun  the  second 
half-year  when  Napoleon  returned  from  Elba,  and  Sand  felt 
himself  called  to  stand  forth  with  his  countrymen  in  defence  of 
Germany.  His  testimonies  from  Tubingen  were  highly  credit- 
able, yet  they  expressed  suspicions  that  during  his  abode  there 
he  had  been  a  member  of  a  political  union  called  Teutonia. 
Sand  then  first,  on  the  day  before  his  departure,  announced  to 
his  parents  his  determination  to  enter  into  the  army,  and  took 
farewell  of  them  by  letter.  The  style  and  tendency  of  his 
letter  differ  essentially  from  his  subsequent  compositions.  We 
see  in  it  only  the  youth  full  of  zeal  and  fervour  for  his  country, 
— who,  pure,  and  without  mixture  of  his  subsequent  political 
religious  exaltation,  avows  his  intimation  to  fight  to  the  death 
for  his  country  and  kindred.  "  With  an  inward  struggle," 
wrote  he  amongst  other  things,  "  held  I  myself  back  the  last 
time  when  the  liberation  of  Germany  was  at  stake,  and  it  was 
only  the  conviction  that  many  thousands  then  stood  in  the  field, 
eager  for  battle  and  victory  for  the  welfare  of  Germany,  that 
could  detain  me."  In  another  place — "  The  spirit  at  home 
and  in  Bavaria  may  be  as  it  will,  I  hold  it  for  the  highest  duty 
to  fight  for  the  liberty  of  my  German  Fatherland ;  of  my  dear 
parents,  brothers,  and  sisters ;  and  of  all  the  good  people  who 
love  me ;  and,  should  numbers  gain  the  advantage  over  us,  to 
contend  to  the  very  last  gasp,  and  triumph  over  a  tyrant  in 
death.  Ever  shall  your  beloved  images  hover  round  me ;  ever 
will  I  have  God  before  my  eyes  and  in  my  heart,  that  I  may  be 
strengthened  to  bear  with  serenity  all  the  fatigues  and  dangers 
of  this  holy  war.  Yet  wherefore  make  the  hearts  of  each 
other  so  heavy  1  We  alone  have  the  right,  the  sacred  cause. 
There  is  a  righteous  God,  and  how  then  shall  we  not  have  the 
victory  ?" 

The  letter  concludes  with  the  words  of  Theodore  Korner, 
which  Sand  had  often  in  his  mouth — 


82  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

v 

Though  rages  hell  itself, 
God,  thy  mighty  hand, 
Hurls  down  the  tower  of  lies. 


Perchance  high  o'er  the  slaughtered  foes 
The  Star  of  Peace  shall  rise. 

Sand  set  out  with  two  friends  on  the  way  through  Stuttgard 
to  Heidelberg,  where  he  stayed  some  days,  and  then  went  on 
to  Mannheim,  where  he  announced  himself  to  the  general  staff 
of  Graf  Rechberg,  and  was  received  as  cadet  in  the  volunteer 
Jagers  of  the  Rezat  Circle.  Before  his  departure  from  Tubin- 
gen, a  friend  presented  him  with  a  small  riband  which  he 
continually  wore  during  the  campaign,  and  afterwards,  at  his 
arrest,  it  was  still  found  round  his  neck.  It  was  green  and 
white.  The  troops,  which  Sand's  brother  also  had  now  joined, 
already  in  Homberg,  met  the  news  of  the  victory  of  Waterloo ; 
they  marched  forward,  however,  to  Meaux,  and  into  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Fontainbleau,  but  soon  after  drew  into  cantonments 
in  Auxurre,  and  from  thence  marched  directly  back,  and 
entered  Anspach  the  2d  of  December,  1815.  Sand  remem- 
bered his  military  career  with  the  highest  dissatisfaction,  since, 
as  he  expressed  himself,  he  had  never  had  the  good  fortune  to 
kill  a  Frenchman.  He  had  written  upon  his  riband  these 
words: — "With  this  dedicated  I  myself  in  1815  to  death. 
Was  it  not  in  earnest?  Would  I  have  recrossed  the  Rhine 
again  except  as  a  conqueror  !" 

Sand  betook  himself  to  Erlangen,  and  occupied  himself  there 
two  years  with  the  study  of  theology.  Here  it  happened  that 
in  the  summer  of  1817,  one  of  his  dearest  friends,  while  bathing, 
was  drowned  before  his  eyes,  and  he  himself  was  in  great 
danger  of  his  life.  This  loss  operated  so  strongly  on  his  mind, 
that  as  he  himself  declared,  he  believed  that  the  spring  of  life 
was  now  over,  and  that  its  summer  had  now  shown  itself. 
Consoled  by  his  teachers  and  friends,  he  now  gave  the  first 
proof  of  his  talents  for  preaching  in  the  High  Church  at 
Erlangen,  continued  there  till  the  end  of  the  half  year,  and  then 
went  to  Jena.  Sand  conducted  himself  during  his  residence  in 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  83 

Erlangen  as  exemplarily  as  before,  yet  he  was  at  the  same 
time  an  active  member  of  the  Teutonia  thefe ;  in  fact  he  was 
twice  a  leader  of  this  union,  and  drew  up  a  constitution  for  the 
Burschenschaftr  under  the  title  of  the  Erlangen  Burschenschaft- 
Custom.  From  Erlangen  and  Jena  he  made  several  short 
journeys,  and  amongst  them  the  one  to  Eisenach,  which 
proved  so  influential  on  his  future  life.  There  he  joined  in  the 
celebration  of  the  festival  on  the  Wartburg,  on  the  18th  of 
October,  1817,  and  his  part  in  this  transaction  he  thus  de- 
scribes : — 

"  On  the  17lh  of  October  I  arrived  in  Eisenach,  and  was 
chosen  on  the  festival-committee.  I  here  helped  to  keep  order ; 
heard  the  speeches  on  the  Wartburg,  but  did  not  speak  myself; 
I  went  in  the  evening  to  the  fire,  and  saw  the  books  burnt.  On 
the  following  morning  I  heard  speeches  for  the  reconcilement 
of  the  djsputes  of  many  of  the  student-quarrels  of  former  years, 
and  listened  to  the  splendid  orations  on  the  Fatherland.  I 
accompanied  the  Burschen  to  the  church,  and  partook  of  the 
sacrament;  then  was  the  festival  ended,  and  I  returned  to 
Jena."  He  adds,  that  it  had  been  a  festival  simply  for  the 
elevation  of  the  sacred  cause,  and  that  no  determinate  object 
besides  had  been  contemplated. 

In  Jena,  Sand  continued  to  educate  himself,  in  order,  as  he 
expressed  himself,  the  better  to  look  about  himself,  and  to 
ground  himself  fairly  in  the  different  departments  of  knowledge ; 
till  suddenly  the  inner  call  for  ever  summoned  him  away.  His 
teachers  there  gave  their  testimony  that  he  always  appeared  as 
a  grave,  quiet,  and  discreet  man,  zealously  striving  after  excel- 
lence. That  he  was  accustomed  to  speak  little,  since  speaking 
appeared  a  difficulty  to  him ;  but  that  what  he  did  say,  was 
always  prudent,  well-considered,  and  sensible,  and  that  his 
deportment  had  nothing  displeasing  in  it,  although  it  was  ener- 
getic and  firm.  During  his  abode  in  Jena,  he  was  a  member  of 
the  so-called  Burschenschaft,  but  at  the  same  time  also  of 
another  company,  which  he  termed  a  Literary  Union.  He 
made  from  Jena  a  journey  into  North  Germany,  and  visited 
many  of  the  most  celebrated  battle-fields  of  both  past  and 


84  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

modern  times.  After  his  return  he  proceeded  again  with  his 
studies  with  unremitting  diligence,  and  had  obtained  permission 
from  his  parents  to  continue  another  half-year  in  Jena,  when 
he  suddenly  broke  off,  on  the  9th  of  March?  1819,  at  four 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  set  out  on  his  last  fatally  eventful 
journey  towards  Mannheim. 

We  have  thus  followed  the  thread  of  Sand's  history  to  this 
period  with  sufficient  minuteness,  and  we  have  permitted  our- 
selves to  sketch  it  with  the  more  exactness,  since  it  is  particu- 
larly interesting  to  trace  all  the  causes  which  could  conduct  a 
character,  otherwise  so  excellent,  to  such  a  crime ; — as,  more- 
over, conjectures  respecting  these  causes  can  only  be  rightly 
founded  on  a  real  knowledge  of  the  circumstances  of  the  case, 
and  from  these  only  can  those  conclusions  be  drawn,  which 
were,  though  without  effect,  employed  in  the  defence  of  this  singu- 
lar man.  In  his  history  we  behold  the  fac-simile  of  the  history  of 
the  whole  Burschenschaft  to  which  he  belonged.  A  description 
of  his  person,  from  that  officially  drawn  up,  may  precede  the  re- 
lation of  his  unhappy  deed.  In  the  protocol  it  stands  thus : — 

"  Sand  was  in  age  twenty-three  and  a  half  years ;  stood  five 
feet  six  inches  high ;  had  strong  black  hair  and  eyebrows ;  a 
high  forehead,  gray  eyes,  longish  nose,  mouth  of  middle  size, 
dark-brown  very  weak  beard,  ordinary  chin,  broad  countenance, 
tolerably  healthy  colour,  with  some  pock-marks  in  the  face."  His 
look  was  open,  and  for  the  most  part  friendly,  but  not  eminently 
intellectual ;  his  physiognomy  good-natured,  but  not  especially 
interesting ;  his  visage  might  be  termed  an  involuntary  mirror 
of  his  mind.  So  painted  themselves  wrath  and  scorn  upon  it, 
when  the  speech  turned  upon  Kotzebue  and  his  connexion  with 
Germany ;  so  might  be  read  in  it  a  painful,  or  an  hostile  feeling, 
when  the  principles  of  his  system  must  be  attacked;  so  that, 
in  the  end,  very  little  attention  became  necessary  to  discern  by 
it,  when  his  answers  did  not  contain  the  truth.  The  play  of 
the  muscles  of  his  forehead  was  particularly  strikingly  acted 
upon  by  an  internal  feeling  of  resistance,  which  generally  rose 
in  him  when  he  desired  by  some  means  to  conceal  the  truth. 

Kotzebue's  writings  had  been  long  disliked  by  Sand.     Many 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  85 

of  his  early  assertions  betray  it.  Such  was  his  observation  to 
his  father : — "  Of  what  use  is  the  man's  literary  talent,  when  the 
German  heart  is  wanting  ?"  On  the  burning  of  his  History  of 
Germany,  on  the  Wartburg,  he  became  immediately  watchful 
of  him ;  but  still  more,  when  shortly  afterwards  his  literary 
Wochenblatt,  or  weekly  paper,  appeared.  In  this  publication, 
Kotzebue  promulgated  his  opinions  often  and  variously  on  the 
then  state  of  German  affairs,  and  many  of  his  views  must  have 
given  great  displeasure.  Thus,  he  contended  especially  against 
the  promotion  of  a  combined  and  constitutional  government  in 
Germany,  and  asserted  that  the  loud  demand  for  this  was  by 
no  means  the  voice  of  the  people,  of  whom  he  very  much 
doubted,  whether  they  wanted  any  constitution  at  all.  For  this 
bold  assertion,  Kotzebue  was  instantly  attacked  and  ridiculed 
on  all  sides.  A  specimen  of  the  missiles  launched  against  him 
on  the  Occasion,  may  be  given  from  an  article  in  the  "  Zeitung 
fur  die  elegante  Welt," — News  for  the  Elegant  World,  in  the 
year  1818:— 

"  This  serious  doubt  (that  of  Kotzebue)  has  fallen  heavily  on 
the  heart.  We  have,  therefore,  with  eagerness  undertaken  the 
following  proposal  for  its  solution.  In  Kotzebue's  right  hand 
lies,  in  fact,  the  means  to  bring  the  matter  to  a  tolerable  cer- 
tainty. If  that  gentleman  will  in  future  take  the  field  against 
the  clamour  for  a  constitution  in  all  his  Plays  with  the  same 
sober  earnestness,  and  jibe  and  joke,  with  which  he  has  power- 
fully and  perseveringly  attacked  other  follies,  then  will  the 
success  or  the  failure  of  his  piece  throw  great  light  on  the 
sentiments  of  the  people;  and  the  multitude  who,  Herr  von 
Kotzebue  so  justly  says,  remain  silent  on  the  matter  in  debate — 
that  means,  they  print  nothing  on  it — will  certainly,  by  applaud- 
ing or  censuring,  clapping  or  hissing,  speak  out.  Should  the 
multitude,  by  hissing  out  anti-constitutional  pieces,  declare  for  a 
constitution,  so  might  the  theatre  immediately  furnish  the  govern- 
ment with  a  proof  whether  the  declaration  was  worthy  of  notice. 
They  might  now,  as  was  done  in  Paris,  after  the  acting  of 
Germanica,  march  soldiers — actual  soldiers — upon  the  stage, 
and  let  them  present  arms  to  the  pit.  If  the  multitude  now 

8 


86  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

applauded  or  ran  away,  it  would  be  the  height  of  the  ridiculous 
to  give  them  a  constitution,  since  it  would  be  manifest  that  they 
had  not  courage  to  maintain  themselves  against  the  hand  of 
power.  But  hissed  and  clamoured  they  still,  it  would  be  time 
"  to  prepare  the  demanded  preparations  for  the  preparation  of  a 
constitution."* 

Sand  assigned  the  ground  of  his  hate  against  Kotzebue,  imme- 
diately in  the  opening  of  his  trial,  and  he  reiterated  the  same  as 
his  actuating  motive  at  its  close ;  namely, — in  the  evening  after 
the  murder,  having  lost  his  voice,  and  being  only  able  to  express 
himself  by  signs,  he  requested  paper,  and  wrote  with  a  black- 
lead  pencil  these  scarcely  legible  words : — "  August  von  Kotze- 
bue is  the  corrupter  of  youth," — alluding  to  Kotzebue's  fre- 
quently slippery  writings,  as  '  Barth  with  the  Iron  Brow,'  and 
such  like, — "  the  slanderer  of  our  people's  history,  and  the  Rus- 
sian spy  upon  our  Fatherland." 

Sand  asserted,  that  by  the  insight  which  he  had  obtained  into 
the  character  and  position  of  Kotzebue,  he  immediately  per- 
ceived that  it  was  impossible  that  he  could  much  longer  continue 
to  live  in  that  manner ;  but  the  resolution  to  destroy  him  with 
his  own  hand  did  not  awake  suddenly  in  him,  it  demanded 
gradual  growth,  and  came  not  to  maturity  without  a  severe 
strife  in  his  own  bosom.  The  well-known  history  of  the  dis- 
covered bulletin  at  length  threw  unquenchable  fuel  on  his  burn- 
ing hatred  against  Kotzebue. 

Kotzebue  was,  in  fact,  commissioned  by  the  Russian  govern- 
ment to  furnish  it  with  full  reports  on  the  political  affairs  and 
relations  of  Germany,  on  the  predominant  popular  opinion,  and 
on  its  literary  transactions.  He  could,  in  truth,  no  more  be 
styled  a  spy  than  an  ambassador  can ;  but  the  reports  which  he 
delivered — the  false  and  detestable  statements  regarding  Ger- 
many which  he  made  in  them,  deserve  the  severest  condemna- 
tion. No  one  was  aware  of  this  secret  practice  of  Kotzebue's, 
till,  through  the  faithlessness  of  a  copyist,  such  a  bulletin  was 
sent  to  the  well-known  historian  Luden,  then  the  editor  of  the 

*  Play  on  the  grandiloquent  words  of  Kotzebue. 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  87 

Jena  "Nemesis,"  a  literary  paper.  The  bulletin  contained  six- 
teen paragraphs  upon  Steffens  (a  writer  on  the  state  of  those 
times),  Schmalz,  Crome,  the  Allemannia,  an  opposition  paper, 
the  Nemesis,  Jung  Stilling,  English  newspapers,  mischievous 
nature  of  freedom  of  the  press,  and,  finally,  a  sort  of  apology  for 
serfdom.  Monarchy  was  panegyrized  in  this  bulletin,  and 
Luden  was  represented  as  a  learned  man,  who,  with  others  of 
the  learned,  longed  heartily  for  a  revolution,  that  they  might 
play  their  parts  as  popular  speakers,  deputies,  and  representa- 
tives. Luden,  enraged  at  these  calumnies,  published  the  bulletin 
in  the  Nemesis,  and  commented  on  it  in  the  most  amusing  man- 
ner. Kotzebue,  who  had  immediate  information  of  this  fact, 
procured  an  order  from  the  Weimar  government  for  the  seizure 
of  these  sheets,  at  the  moment  they  should  be  ready  for  issue : 
but  Wieland,  the  editor  of  the  opposition  paper,  had  already 
received  proof-sheets  of  the  article,  and  caused  it  to  appear  at 
the  same  time  in  the  People's  Friend,  which  he  edited,  with  still 
more  biting  remarks;  since  Luden,  in  the  Nemesis,  had  ex- 
pressed some  doubts  whether  Kotzebue  were  really  the  author 
of  these  malicious  calumnies.  A  long  legal  process  took  place 
between  Kotzebue  and  the  learned  editors,  and  proceedings 
were  laid  before  the  Spruch  Collegium — College  of  Arbitration 
of  the  University  of  Leipsic.  These  gentlemen  were  declared 
by  this  tribunal,  guilty  of  a  literary  robbery  upon  Kotzebue, 
since  the  bulletin  was  not  intended  or  delivered  out  by  him  for 
publication ;  but  after  the  death  of  Kotzebue  in  the  following 
year,  they  were  declared  free  from  all  penalty  by  the  High  Court 
of  Appeal  in  Weimar. 

The  fact,  however,  which  finally  and  at  once  sealed  the 
determination  of  Sand,  was  the  appearance  of  the  work  of 
Stourdze,  and  Kotzebue's  standing  forth  as  his  defender. 
Stourdze,  a  Russian,  published  a  most  odious  and  miserable 
volume,  in  which  he  lauded  absolute  monarchy,  railed  against 
freedom  of  the  press,  misrepresented  the  spirit  of  the  German 
High  Schools  in  the  most  abominable  terms,  and  at  the  same 
time  advised  that  they  should  be  stripped  of  all  their  rights  and 
privileges,  and  laid  under  the  strictest  discipline.  The  author 


88  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

was  formally  accused  by  the  Burschenschaft  of  Jena  for  his 
calumnies,  to  the  Grand  Duke  of  Weimar,  who  laid  the  case 
before  the  Bundestag.  Stourdze  defended  himself  in  the  public 
papers ;  two  youths,  not  students,  but  belonging  to  the  Burschen- 
schaft, afterwards  challenged  him  to  single  combat,  whom, 
however,  he  answered  only  with  words  in  the  newspapers. 

Sand  now  brooded  a  whole  half-year  in  irresolution  over  this 
thought — whether  he  should  devote  himself  as  the  instrument 
for  taking  out  of  the  way  this,  in  his  eyes,  so  dangerous  an 
enemy  of  the  weal  of  the  German  people.  "  The  determina- 
tion," said  he,  "  must  first  progress  in  myself  to  a  greater  maturity, 
since  I  have  partly  to  contend  in  myself  with  the  natural  shrink- 
ing from  the  performance  of  such  a  deed,  and  partly  with  the 
oft  recurring  thought  that  I  am  worthy  of  and  qualified  for 
something  better,  by  the  character  of  my  mind,  and  my  already 
acquired  accomplishments.  I  have  also  waited  for  a  third,  since 
I  had  as  good  a  right  to  wait  for  a  third,  as  he  to  wait  for  me. 
But  as  I  found  no  one,  this  was  likewise  a  ground  of  determina- 
tion for  myself.  Oft  have  I  thought — '  thou  canst  quietly  live 
on,  if  but  a  third  person  undertake  the  deed.'  This  waiting  was 
thus  properly  only  a  wish  that  another  might  step  before  me ; 
for  the  rest,  however,  I  knew  no  such  third." 

Sand  often  prayed  to  God  that  this  requisition  might  be 
allowed  to  pass  from  him,  and  that  he  might  be  left  to  pursue 
his  ordinary  duties.  But  in  this  inward  warfare,  the  inner 
voice  perpetually  returned,  saying — "  Thou  hast  promised  so 
much,  and  hast  yet  done  nothing."  The  projected  work  stood 
thenceforth  so  vividly  before  his  eyes,  that  his  imagination 
enabled  him  to  sketch  out  a  drawing  of  the  murder-scene  be- 
forehand, which  was  found  amongst  some  indifferent  pen-and-ink 
outlines  amongst  his  papers  in  Jena.  Still  he  continued  to  waver, 
till  the  newspapers  brought  a  report,  that  Kotzebue  intended  to 
return  to  Russia ;  and  then  stood  forth  Sand's  resolution  to  mur- 
der the  traitor,  let  it  turn  out  as  it  would,  and  though  he  should 
himself  lead  the  way  to  death  for  him.  Besides  this  it  was  part 
of  his  plan  to  make  a  confession,  to  bring  the  Death-Blow  to 
the  knowledge  of  the  people.  His  original  plan  was,  after  the 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  gg 

accomplishment  of  the  deed,  to  betake  himself  to  his  weapons, 
and  to  make  his  escape  if  possible,  so  that  provided  he  effected 
his  own  retreat,  self-destruction  formed  no  part  of  the  scheme. 
While  he  brooded  over  his  enterprise,  he  prepared  the  instru- 
ments of  his  design.  He  made  choice,  to  that  end,  of  a  smaller 
and  a  greater  dagger.  The  latter  he  called  the  small  sword, 
and  had  it  made  in  Jena  after  a  model  in  wax,  prepared  by  his 
own  hand,  and  from  his  own  drawing.  For  the  carrying  of 
these  weapons  he  made  a  hole  in  the  breast  of  his  waistcoat,  in 
which  on  account  of  its  weight,  this  dagger  hung ;  but  for  the 
lesser  one  he  had  a  small  hook  sewed  into  the  left-arm  sleeve  of 
his  coat,  which  by  a  small  eye  secured  the  sheath  there.  Before 
setting  out  on  his  expedition  of  death,  he  completed  his  Death- 
Blow,  or  Confession,  prepared  the  fair  copy,  which  after  the 
accomplishment  of  the  act,  he  purposed  to  stick  up  in  some 
public  place ;  then  the  original  of  the  same,  as  he  called  it,  and 
numerous  transcripts  of  the  same.  This  Death-Blow  was  a 
document  on  which  Sand  long  laboured,  and  for  the  promulga- 
tion of  which,  after  the  deed,  he  had  taken  measures.  It  was 
designed  to  be  a  call  to  the  people  to  rise  and  assert  their  liberty. 
As  this  composition  not  only  places  in  the  clearest  light  the  then 
overstrained  state  of  Sand's  mind,  but  also  gives  us  glimpses  of 
many  ideas  of  the  Burschenschaft  at  that  period,  which  the 
government  were  afterwards  obliged  to  hold  in  check,  it  shall 
here  find  a  place. 


8* 


90  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 


DEATH-BLOW  TO  AUGUST  VON  KOTZEBUE  ! 

"  ONLY  IN  VIRTUE,  UNITY." 

"  OUR  days  demand  a  decision  for  the  law  which  God  has 
written  in  flaming  characters  in  the  hearts  of  his  men.  Prepare 
yourselves  !  decide  for  life  and  for  death  ! 

"  Open  nightly  profligacy  is  not  the  corruption  which  rages 
in  our  blood,  but  vice  devours  around  him  only  the  more  hide- 
ously under  the  mantle  of  an  accustomed  pious  politeness :  false- 
hood masks  itself  under  a  thousand  assumed  holy  forms ;  and 
the  condition  of  the  people  should  be  the  blossom  of  so  many 
sacrifices,  and  is  the  state  of  the  old  miserable  laxity. 

"  Half-accomplished  fools,  and  the  stunted  overwise,  for  ever 
deride  the  truth,  which  unadorned  and  simple,  throws  itself  on 
the  human  mind,  and  they  cripple  and  distort  her  use  in  life. 
The  moral  strength  of  the  Germans  is  split  on  the  Babel  of 
foreign  affectation,  and  keeps  itself  no  longer  in  the  house-life. 
The  will  is  wanting  in  us  for  the  deed.  The  Fatherland  fails 
the  youth.  Courtiers  and  money-service  rule,  instead  of  that 
honour-firm  integrity  which  has  resigned  itself  to  the  influence 
of  time,  and  is  become  mouldy  in  it. 

"  The  virtue  of  the  burger  class  bends  itself  servilely  at  the 
nod  of  the  great,  and  rushes,  with  already  gripped  clutch,  at  the 
gold-bag.  The  idleness  of  servants  devours  our  bones  ;  courage 
and  hero-mind  display  themselves  alone  in  paper  panoply  amongst 
the  whole  people  in  empty  vapouring ;  and  since  they  glow  not 
as  pure  flames  in  every  heart,  we  find  them  not  even  in  ourselves. 

"  Deep  based  on  equally  vile  sentiments  in  the  people,  stands 
the  most  sensual  government ;  and  unrestrained  arbitrary  power 
needs  no  other  protection  than  these  ; — the  separation  of  frater- 
nal hearts  by  the  means  of  jealously-guarded  frontiers,  of  the 
leading-strings  of  strict  and  public  surveillance  ;  of  cradle-songs, 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  91 

and  the  sermons  of  sloth  ;  and  it  rests  itself  as  upon  very  sufficient 
props,  on  the  wages  and  the  oaths  of  police  and  soldiers.  Many 
amongst  the  great  German  people  may  stand  far  before  me  ;  but 
1  also  hate  nothing  more  than  the  cowardice  and  effeminacy  of 
this  day.  I  must  give  an  example  of  this.  I  must  proclaim  my- 
self against  this  laxity ;  and  I  know  nothing  nobler  to  achieve 
than  to  strike  down  the  arch-slave,  and  great  advocate  of  this 
mercenary  time,  the  corrupter  and  betrayer  of  my  people — August 
von  Kotzobue ! 

"  Thou,  my  German  People,  exalt  thyself,  to  a  higher  moral 
worth  of  manhood  ;  of  the  free  spirit  of  man,  and  his  creative 
strength !  My  German  People  !  thou  hast  no  realler  nor  nobler 
possession ;  it  is  thy  highest  good.  Honour,  guard  this  faith — 
this  thy  love  to  God.  Let  thy  sanctuary  no  more  be  trodden 
under  foot 

"  Man,  be  he  born  in  the  most  miserable  and  abject  condi- 
tion, is  created  to  become  an  image  of  God.  Rely  on  the  pro- 
mised Christian  freedom.  Honour  and  trust  only  the  free  man. 
Detest  the  traitors,  the  slaves  in  soul,  the  false  teachers,  who  will 
not  have  this.  Hate  the  dastardly  poets  of  half-measures,  the 
preachers  of  cowardice,  the  hirelings  who  hold  thee  back  from 
every  bold  enterprise.  Detest  and  murder  all  those  who  lift 
themselves  so  high  in  their  villanous  and  despotic  fancies  that 
they  forget  the  godlike  in  thee,  and  hold  and  drive  thee,  the  mad 
multitude,  in  their  high-wise  hands,  as  a  complex  wheel. 

"  Free  conscience  !  free  speech !  Man  shall  solace  himself 
at  his  own  free  pleasure  in  the  divine  light,  of  which  the  foun- 
tain is  in  him.  He  shall  strive  after  the  highest  discoveries,  and 
shall  be  able,  unburdened  by  those  of  others,  to  prove  and  build 
up  his  own  convictions.  But  man  also  shall  verify  these  opinions ; 
he  shall  live  and  act ;  he  shall  exercise  his  divine  creative  power 
— his  will,  and  shall  make  it  availing.  It  is  for  this  that  we  have 
received  the  whole  might  of  will — not  that  we  may  suffer 
others  to  decide  what  they  please  concerning  us,  as  over  a  piece 
of  a  field,  but  that  in  every  condition  of  life  we  may  determine 
for  ourselves  ;  and  therein  all  virtue  demonstrates  itself — that  we, 
in  every  thing  which  concerns  the  people,  shall  take  a  lively 


92  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

interest,  and  so  act  upon  our  own  resolves,  each  as  we  will,  and 
not  as  another  compels. 

"Finally,  make  free  your  wills! 

"  This  is  the  sole,  purely  human,  this  the  necessary  foundation 
for  every  human  society:  this  must  be  won  for  the  German 
Empire!  Only  when  this  sole  and  righteous  condition  is  achieved, 
then  only  can  be  the  discussion  on  further  undertakings. 

"  My  German  people !  win  self-dependence,  and  that  lofty 
mind,  which  already  some  of  thy  heroes  have  borne  in  them. 
This  is  the  right,  hallowed  spirit  of  life,  that  thou  dost  that  which 
the  sacred  Scriptures  of  Christendom  and  of  antiquity  teach — 
that  which  thy  poets  sing :  and  admirest  or  regardest  them  not 
merely  as  empty  fables.  Brother !  proudly  and  courageously 
shalt  thou  win  by  high  endeavour,  that  highest  and  holiest  object 
which  thy  soul  can  conceive — the  condition  of  a  purified,  and 
beatified  manhood — 

A  Christ  canst  thou  become. 

"  So  learn,  my  People,  the  time  in  which,  after  long  wander- 
ing, joy  and  unity  shall  come  back  into  this  life.  The  Reforma- 
tion, begun  three  hundred  years  ago,  sought  to  restore  the  life 
of  our  people  after  the  image  of  God.  It  is  not  yet  completed  ! 
for  yet  continue  compulsion  of  conscience,  servitude,  tearing 
asunder  of  brothers  in  our  country,  and  no  one  can  rejoice  him- 
self after  a  Christian  and  purely  human  form.  Brothers,  break 
the  ancient  chains  of  the  Popedom,  the  chains  of  arbitrary  rule ! 
We  Germans, — one  empire  and  one  church  !  Let  the  schism 
betwixt  spiritual  and  secular  be  annihilated !  Faith,  learning, 
and  action,  shall  unite  themselves  into  one,  and  bloom  anew  in 
the  Christian  enthusiasm  of  free  German  citizens. 

"  The  Reformation  must  be  completed  !  Brothers,  abandon 
not  one  another  in  the  oppressions  of  the  times.  Sluggishness 
and  treason  blacken  history  with  the  hand  of  slavery !  You 
have  it  before  you  ! 

"  Up  !  I  show  you  the  great  day  of  freedom  !  Up,  my  people, 
bethink  thee ;  make  thyself  free  !" 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  93 

The  writing  of  Sand  "  To  the  Burschenschaft  in  Jena,"  and 
the  other  "To  my  Friends  of  the  true  German  mind,"  were 
completed  only  a  few  days  before  his  setting  out ;  and  finally  he 
composed  also  a  so-called  "  Sentence  of  Death  against  Kotze- 
bue."  He  left  behind,  in  his  desk,  a  statement  of  the  debts 
which  his  parents  should  pay  ;  and  an  order  that  his  books  and 
other  things  should  be  sent  home.  He  empowered  a  student  to 
receive  all  current  letters  and  money  for  him.  He  contracted 
for  his  lodgings  with  his  landlord  for  the  ensuing  half-year.  To 
those  who  asked  whither  he  was  going,  he  gave  the  double- 
meaning  answer — "  Home."  A  letter  was  also  found  addressed 
to  his  parents,  as  follows : 

"  To  Father,  Mother,  Brothers,  Sisters,  Brother-in-law,  leachers, 
and  all  Friends  !     True,  eternally  true  soids  ! 

"  Why  still  more  aggravate  your  pain  ?  I  thought,  and  hesi- 
tated to  write  to  you  on  this  business.  Truly,  if  you  received 
the  intelligence  of  what  has  occurred  at  once,  might  the  bitter 
sorrow  the  easier  and  quicker  pass  over ;  but  the  truth  of  affec- 
tion would  in  that  case  be  wounded,  and  this  great  affliction  can 
only  be  wholly  conquered  by  our  emptying  the  whole  cup  of 
wo  at  once,  and  thus  keeping  faithful  to  our  friend  the  true,  the 
eternal  Father  in  heaven.  So  from  the  shut-up  bosom,  forth  thou 
long,  great  pang  of  the  last  speech ;  plain  dealing  can  alone 
soften  the  agony  -of  parting.  This  sheet  brings  to  you  the  last 
greeting  of  the  son  and  the  brother !  Much  and  continually 
have  I  talked  and  wished,  it  is  now  time  that  I  left  dreaming, 
and  the  trouble  of  my  Fatherland  impels  me  to  action.  This 
is  unquestionably  the  highest  misery  in  this  earth-life,  if  the 
affairs  of  God,  through  guilt,  come  to  a  dead  pause  in  their 
lively  developement ;  this  is  for  us  the  most  overwhelming  dis- 
grace, if  all  that  beauty  and  good  which  would  have  been  boldly 
pursued  by  thousands  and  on  whose  account  thousands  have  joy- 
fully offered  themselves  up,  as  dream-shapes,  without  abiding 
consequence,  now  sinks  away  into  dark  discontent ;  if  the  refor- 
mation of  the  old  life,  now  in  its  half-way  advance,  stand  petri- 


94  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

fied.  Our  grandchildren  would  have  to  bewail  this  neglect.  The 
commencement  of  the  restoration  of  German  life  was  made  with 
spirits  animated  by  God,  within  the  last  twenty  years,  and  espe- 
cially in  that  hallowed  season  1813.  The  paternal  house  is  shaken 
to  the  foundations — forwards !  let  us  raise  it  again,  fresh  and  beau- 
tiful, a  true  temple  of  God,  as  our  hearts  long  after  it.  They  are 
but  a  few  who  oppose  themselves  as  a  dam  against  the  stream  of 
the  evolutions  of  the  higher  humanity  in  the  German  people ;  why 
then  do  whole  hosts  bow  themselves  again  under  the  yoke  of  these 
knaves  1  shall  our  once  awaked  salvation  perish  again  ?  Many 
of  the  most  abandoned  traitors  play  their  game  without  obstruc- 
tion, with  us,  to  the  complete  corruption  of  our  people.  Among 
these,  Kotzebue  is  the  subtlest  and  most  malicious ;  the  actual 
tool  and  mouthpiece  of  every  thing  base  in  our  timet  and  his 
voice  is  exactly  fitted  to  beguile  us  Germans  of  all  bitterness 
and  opposition  to  the  most  unrighteous  usurpations,  and  to  lull 
us  into  the  old  indolent  slumber.  He  practises  daily  arch-treason 
against  the  Fatherland,  and  then  stands  there,  protected  by  his 
hypocritical  speeches,  and  artful  flatteries,  and  wrapped  in  the 
mantle  of  a  great  political  reputation,  spite  of  his  wickedness,  as 
an  idol  for  the  half  of  Germany,  which  blinded  by  him,  wil- 
lingly imbibes  the  poison  which,  for  Russian  pay,  he  prepares 
for  them  in  his  daily  publications.  Will  not  the  greatest  disaster 
befall  us  1  Will  not  the  history  of  our  day  be  blackened  with 
everlasting  shame  ?  He  must  perish  !  I  say  continually  if  any 
saving  influence  is  to  arise,  we  must  not  shrink  from  strife  and 
toil ;  the  true  freedom  of  the  German  people  then  only  awakes 
in  us,  when  challenged  and  dared  by  the  brave, — when  the  son 
of  the  Fatherland  in  the  contest  for  the  right  and  for  the  highest 
good,  casts  all  other  loves  behind  him,  and  loves  death  alone. 

"  That  this  may  be,  who  shall  rush  upon  this  pitiful  fellow, 
upon  this  hireling  traitor,  Kotzebue?  In  anguish  and  bitter 
tears  turned  to  the  Almighty,  have  I  waited  a  long  time  for  the 
appearance  of  one  who  would  step  before  me,  and  release  me, 
not  fitted  for  murder,  would  release  me  from  my  pain,  and 
leave  me  to  proceed  on  the  pleasant  path  that  I  have  chosen. 
Spite  of  all  my  prayers,  no  one  has  appeared,  and  each  has  as 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  95 

good  a  right  as  myself  to  wait  for  another.  Delay  makes  our 
condition  continually  worse  and  more  pitiable ;  and  who  shall 
absolve  us  from  the  shame,  if  Kotzebue  leave  German  ground 
unpunished,  and  shall  enjoy  in  Russia  a  fortune  acquired  by  his 
treason  ?  Who  shall  help  and  save  us  out  of  this  unhappy  con- 
dition, if  every  one,  and  I  in  my  province  first  of  all,  feels  not 
the  call  to  maintain  justice,  and  to  do  what  ought  to  be  done 
for  German  Fatherland?  So  then  boldly  forward!  I  will 
assault  him  with  a  heart  confident  in  God  to  strike  down  the 
calumniator  and  betrayer  of  our  brethren — the  horrible  traitor ! 
that  he  may  cease  from  turning  us  from  God  and  history,  and 
plotting  to  deliver  us  into  the  hands  of  the  cunningest  enemy. 
Solemn  duty  compels  me  to  it.  Since  I  have  discovered  what 
a  lofty  prize  our  people  have  in  the  present  time  to  wrestle  for 
— and  that  he  is  the  cowardly  false  villain  that  would  prevent 
their  destiny — it  is  become  for  me,  as  for  every  German  who 
regards  the  well-being  of  the  whole,  a  rigorous  Must!  May 
I  direct  the  eyes  of  all  active  and  public-spirited  men,  to  where 
danger  and  falsehood  threaten,  and  turn,  in  time,  the  fear  of 
all,  and  the  vigorous  youth  to  the  right  point,  that  they  may 
save  the  common  Fatherland,  Germany,  the  perpetually  rent, 
the  unworthy  states-union,  from  an  imminent  danger.  May 
I  scatter  terror  over  the  base  and  the  cowardly,  and  courage 
over  the  good !  Writing  and  speaking  effect  nothing — it  is 
action  alone  that  now  creates  union.  May  I,  at  least,  cast  a 
brand  into  the  present  indifference,  and  rouse  and  augment  the 
flame  of  popular  feeling,  that  glorious  struggle  for  the  affairs  of 
God  amongst  mankind,  which  burned  in  us  in  1813 — then 
were  all  my  highest  and  holiest  wishes  fulfilled !  On  this 
account,  though  startled  out  of  all  lovely  dreams  of  coming  life, 
still  am  I  calm,  full  of  trust  in  God ;  yea,  happy,  since  I  see  the 
path  sketched  out  for  me  through  Night  and  Death,  by  which 
I  may  pay  back  to  my  Fatherland  all  that  I  owe  it 

"  So  farewell,  you  dear  souls !  This  sudden  parting  falls 
heavily,  and  your  expectations  and  my  wishes  are  probably 
disappointed;  yet  may  this  have  prepared  us,  and  therefore 
now  be  our  comfort — that  what  the  necessity  of  the  Fatherland 


96  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

demands,  is  the  first  of  all  things  to  be  desired  by  us,  and  has 
always  lived  in  me  as  the  most  inviolable  principle.  You 
may  hereafter  say  and  think  among  yourselves — '  Yet  had  he 
through  our  sacrifices  learnt  to  know  the  whole  of  life  on  this 
earth,  the  joy  there  is  in  this  human  society ;  and  he  appeared 
to  love  this  land,  and  his  chosen  profession  heartily.'  Yes,  so 
was  it;  so  did  I  under  your  affectionate  guardianship.  Through 
your  countless  sacrifices  and  cares  for  me,  are  my  land  and 
life  become  so  thoroughly  dear  to  me ;  you  caused  me  to  be 
introduced  into  the  world  of  knowledge ;  I  have  lived  in  the 
active  pursuits  of  a  free  spirit ;  I  have  glanced  into  history,  and 
then  turned  back  into  my  own  mind  in  order  to  twine  myself 
up  by  the  tendril  of  the  spirit  firmly  to  the  pillar  of  faith  in  the 
Eternal,  and  through  the  free  inquiries  of  my  understanding,  to 
acquire  a  clearer  perception  of  myself  and  of  the  greatness  of 
surrounding  things.  I  have  cultivated  the  sciences  in  the  usual 
course  with  all  my  power,  and  reached  thereby  the  position 
and  capacity  to  oversee  the  district  of  human  knowledge,  and 
have  thereupon  spoken  out  my  convictions  with  friends  and 
other  persons ;  have  travelled  the  country,  to  learn,  to  know 
men  and  their  doings.  As  a  preacher  of  the  gospel  would 
I  joyfully  have  spent  this  life,  and  in  any  possible  overthrow  of 
our  social  customs  and  of  knowledge,  by  the  help  of  God, 
would  have  discharged  faithfully  the  duties  of  my  office. 

"  But  should  all  this  have  withheld  me  from  warding  off 
more  imminent  danger  from  my  country?  Must  not  your 
unspeakable  love  for  me  directly  spur  me  on  to  set  death  at 
defiance  for  the  common  good  and  the  object  of  all  our  endea- 
vours? What  numbers  of  the  modern  Greeks  have  already 
fallen,  to  liberate  their  people  from  the  scourge  of  the  Turks, 
and  are  yet  dead  without  having  effected  any  visible  conse- 
quence, without  any  prospect  of  it ;  and  hundreds  of  them  also 
amongst  us,  preparing  themselves  by  education,  suffer  not  their 
courage  to  sink,  but  are  immediately  ready  again  to  offer  their 
lives  for  the  good  of  their  country,  and  would  I  not  die  for 
mine?  And  will  not  we,  to  whom  the  salvation  and  the 
working  out  of  the  highest  blessings  are  so  near  and  dear,  will 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  97 

we  do  nothing  to  that  end  1  And  do  I  mistake  your  love,  or 
would  I  wantonly  sport  with  it?  Believe  it  not.  What  should 
arm  me  for  death,  if  not  alone  the  love  to  you  and  the  Father- 
land, which  impels  me  thus  to  testify  it  to  you. 

"  Mother,  thou  wilt  say, — Why  have  I  brought  up  a  son  to 
maturity,  whom  I  loved,  and  who  loved  me ;  for  whom  I  have 
striven  with  a  thousand  cares  and  continual  anxiety;  who 
through  my  prayers  became  inspired  with  the  love  of  goodness, 
and  from  whom  I  fondly  hoped  in  the  last  days  of  my  weary 
pilgrimage  to  experience  repose  and  filial  love  ?  Why  forsakes 
he  me  now  1  Dear  mother !  might  not  the  fosterer  of  another 
also  thus  lament,  if  he  went  forth  for  his  Fatherland?  If  no 
other  will  do  that,  where  will  the  Fatherland  be?  But  certainly 
thou  complainest  not  thus,  but  thinkest  on  these  things  too  justly. 
Complain  not,  noble  woman !  Once  already  have  I  received 
thy  call*,  and  if  no  one  now  would  step  forward  for  the  good 
cause,  wouldst  thou  thyself  send  me  forth  to  the  contest.  Still 
two  brothers,  and  two  sisters,  all  true  and  noble,  have  I  before 
me — they  remain  to  you — I  follow  my  duty  !  The  young  ones 
will  step  into  my  place,  they  will  be  true  to  their  country — 
they  also  are  your  children.  In  the  world  have  we  troubles, 
but  in  God  we  are  able  to  overcome  them  like  Christ.  Oh  that 
we  may  enjoy  his  peace  in  full  measure !  Forsaken  on  the 
solitary  way  which  I  tread  alone,  I  have  no  dependence  but 
upon  the  Eternal  Father:  in  him,  however,  grasp  I  courage 
and  strength  to  conquer  the  last  terror,  and  to  accomplish  my 
solemn  deed.  I  commend  you  to  his  protection  and  comfort. 
May  he  lift  you  to  that  joy  which  misfortunes  are  not  able  to 
disturb.  Forget  then  the  loss  in  the  enduring  joy  in  Him,  and 
regard  not  my  tears  so  much  as  the  love  which  exists  between 
us,  and  never  can  perish.  Advance  still  farther  for  your  coun- 
try, and  conduct  your  little  ones — to  whom  so  gladly  would 
I  have  become  the  guiding  friend — without  delay,  up  into  the 
mighty  mountains,  and  let  them  there,  upon  that  sublime  altar 
in  the  midst  of  the  Fatherland,  dedicate  themselves  and  swear, 
never  to  rest  nor  to  lay  down  the  sword  till  the  Brethren  are 
united  in  freedom,  till  all  Germany  as  one  people,  and  with  one 

9 


98  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

constitution  for  the  whole  empire,  great  before  God  and  mighty 
against  their  neighbours,  is  knit  into  one  complete  whole ! 

"  With  joyful  look  turned  toward  Thee,  Eternal  God,  stands 
my  Fatherland  !  Blessed  be  the  great  host  of  the  German 
people  ready  armed  for  the  battle,  who,  recognising  the  high 
privilege  to  be  allowed  to  promote  the  cause  of  a  pure  huma- 
nity, thy  image  upon  earth,  stands  courageously  resolved,  and 
amongst  those  may  I  see  them  in  whose  love  I  shall  glory  till 
my  end. 

"  Salvation  lies — highest  and  solely  in  the  sword ; 
Press  then  the  spear  into  the  patriot  heart, 
And  make  a  way  for  freedom  ! 

"  KARL  SAND." 

On  the  19th  of  March,  as  already  staled,  he  suddenly  quitted 
Jena  without  taking  any  leave  of  the  people  of  the  house.  His 
travelling  dress  consisted  of  a  black  German  coat,  with  red 
cloth  waistcoat,  black  cloth  trousers,  laced  boots,  and  a  black 
velvet  cap  with  a  front.  Over  his  dress  he  wore  on  the  way, 
for  the  most  part,  a  blue  carter's  frock.  Amongst  other  things 
was  found  in  his  pocket,  Korner's  "  Lyre  and  Sword,"  in 
which  many  lines  were  under-drawn  with  single,  and  others 
with  double  scores  ;  as  for  instance  in  the  poem  "  Through," — 

What  wins  this  long  delaying  ] 

The  strong  with  fearless  tread — 
The  act  alone,  unstaying, 

Crushes  the  serpent's  head. 

And  his  favourite  quotation  from  the  poem  "  Call  to  Arms," 
"  Salvation  lies,"  etc.  as  given  above.  So  prepared,  Sand  left 
the  university  city  of  Jena.  His  journey  towards  Mannheim 
was  by  no  means  hurried,  but  extended  itself  to  fourteen  days. 
He  had  read  in  the  papers  that  Kotzebue  would  not  set  out  for 
Russia  till  the  spring,  and  the  anxiety  respecting  the  conse- 
quences of  the  deed  produced  procrastination,  and  occasioned 
him  again  an  unceasing  self-struggle.  From  Erfurt  he  tra- 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  99 

veiled  to  Frankfort  with  two  merchants,  and  when  they  came 
to  Eisenach  he  persuaded  his  two  companions  to  take  their 
dinner  on  the  Wartburg.  On  this  occasion  he  is  said  to  have 
asserted — "  Here  have  sacred  words  been  spoken,  and  from  this 
place  will  yet  go  forth  much  good."  He  also  wrote  there  in 
in  the  Stamm-book  for  the  students,  these  words: — "What  will 
the  old  nightcaps  (humdrums,  dreamy  but  inactive  people)  do 
for  you?  Depend  upon  yourselves,  and  build  up  to  God  an 
altar  in  your  own  hearts." — Then  his  favourite  quotation  from 
Korner. 

From  Frankfort  he  went  on  to  Darmstadt ;  where,  as  in  the 
places  already  mentioned,  he  lodged  with  his  kind  friends.  In 
Darmstadt  he  remained  some  days.  He  states  that  he  had  not 
been  quite  well,  and  had  given  himself  up  to  his  reflections. 
One  of  his  friends  accompanied  him  a  part  of  the  way  thence, 
and  at«Sand's  request,  cut  off  his  long  hair,  which  attracted 
attention  on  the  road.  He  arrived  at  Lorsch,  and  intended  to 
have  gone  from  there  to  Wurms;  but  his  reluctance  to  his 
enterprise  became  so  great,  that  he  determined  on  the  following 
day  to  advance  at  once  upon  the  danger.  He  now  read  once 
more  the  Gospel  of  St.  John,  which  he  carried  with  him  in 
separate  sheets,  and  Korner's  poem  "  Through." 

On  the  23d  of  March  he  arrived  in  Mannheim,  at  half-past 
nine  in  the  morning,  and  went  to  the  Vineyard  hotel.  There 
he  breakfasted  without  the  host's  perceiving  any  agitation  of 
mind  in  him,  and  about  eleven  o'clock  was  conducted  by  a 
waiter  of  the  inn  to  the  house  of  Kotzebue.  He  then  went 
back,  on  pretence  of  tying  a  handkerchief  round  his  neck,  as 
he  found  it  too  cold  with  open  breast.  Again  arrived  at 
Kotzebue's  residence,  he  caused  the  waiter  to  retire,  and 
announced  himself  through  the  maid  who  opened  the  door,  as 
a  gentleman  from  Mietau.  Kotzebue,  however,  was  not  at 
home,  and  he  was  requested  to  call  again  at  five  in  the  evening. 
He  therefore  took  a  walk  to  the  Rhine,  and  inquired  where  lay 
the  wood  of  Neckerau,  and  its  distance,  and  at  one  o'clock 
returned  to  the  inn.  He  conducted  himself  during  dinner  with 


100  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

great  equanimity,  ate  moderately,  and  drank  a  choppin*  of 
wine.  His  companions  at  table  were  two  clergymen  from  the 
Upper  Rhine  country,  with  whom  he  conversed  partly  on 
topics  of  general  history,  and  partly  on  the  Reformation  and 
Luther.  He  stayed  with  the  company  till  towards  five  o'clock, 
and  then  said  that  he  must  yet  pay  a  visit  to  Kotzebue.  This 
time  he  met  his  victim.  He  announced  himself,  and  was  shown 
into  a  room  on  the  right  hand  of  which  lay  Kotzebue's  study, 
separated  only  from  it  by  a  small  cabinet,  while  the  nursery 
and  the  sitting-room  of  the  family  lay  on  its  left  side.  On  the 
proceedings  in  this  room  Sand  himself  observed, — "  The  ser- 
vant spent  some  minutes  in  going  about  in  the  room  or  speak- 
ing; he  then  called  me  in,  but  still  continued  standing  in  the 
doorway,  and  spoke  in  a  low  voice  towards  the  interior  of  the 
room.  I  was  finally  admitted,  and  Kotzebue  stepped  into  the 
room  from  the  door  on  the  left  hand.  I  saw  him  appear  at  the 
half-open  door,  and  then  enter  as  the  door  was  quite  open.  I 
went  about  six  steps  forward  into  the  room  and  greeted  him. 
He  stepped  somewhat  nearer  to  the  door,  and  I  then  turned 
myself  towards  him  on  the  side  of  the  entrance.f  The  most 
fearful  thing  to  me  was  that  I  must  dissemble.  I  said  that  I 
had  a  desire  to  call  on  him  as  I  travelled  through  the  place, 
and,  after  some  pro  and  con,  I  added, — '  I  pride  myself — which 
Kotzebue  probably  interpreted  otherwise  than  as  I  meant, — 
then  drew  I  the  dagger,  and  continued — '  not  in  thee !  Here, 
thou  traitor  to  the  Fatherland!'  and  with  the  last  word  I 
struck  him  down. 

"  I  named  myself  Henry  from  Mietau,  since  I  believed  that 
Kotzebue  would  not  admit  me  if  I  announced  myself  a  native 
German.  It  was  much  more  probable  under  the  name  of  a 
Courlander ;  and  Kotzebue  actually  said — «  You  are  from 
Mietau  T 

"  How  many  blows  I  gave  him  I  cannot  say:  as  little,  which 
was  the  first.  It  was  quickly  done.  I  drew  the  dagger  out  of 

*  About  a  pint.  t  Probably  to  prevent  Kotzebue's  retreat. 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  101 

the  left  sleeve,  where  I  had  secured  it  in  a  sheath,  and  gave 
him  several  stabs  in  the  left  side.  Kotzebue  spoke  not  a  word 
during  the  attack,  only  uttered  a  cry  of  alarm,  the  instant  that 
he  saw  me  rush  upon  him  with  uplifted  arm.  He  stretched  out 
his  hands,  and  fell  immediately  at  the  entrance  of  the  room  on 
the  left  hand,  about  three  steps  from  the  same.  How  I  should 
have  wounded  him  in  the  face  I  know  not.  Probably  it  may 
have  happened  through  his  holding  his  hands  and  arms  before 
him,  and  moving  them  about.  I  held  the  dagger  so  that  the 
edge  was  above  the  thumb  and  the  fist,  and  struck  directly  out, 
neither  from  above  nor  from  below.  Kotzebue  fell  together  in 
a  sitting  posture.  I  then  looked  him  in  the  face  to  see  how  it 
was  with  him.  I  wished  to  ascertain  the  effect  of  the  attack, 
and  a  second  time  looked  him  in  the  face.  He  continually 
winked  with  his  eyelids,  so  that  one  could  now  see  the  whites 
of  his  eyes,  and  now  nothing.  I  therefore  concluded  that  he 
was  not  dead ;  but  I  interfered  no  further  with  him,  because  I 
was  persuaded  that  enough  had  been  done." 

Sand  having  completed  his  act,  turned  towards  the  window 
in  order  to  regain  his  old  standing  place,  but  that  turn  produced 
a  deciding  influence  on  his  fate.  "  I  saw,"  said  he,  "  in  turning 
round,  a  little  child,  which  during  the  deed  had  sprung  into  the 
room  from  the  left-hand  door.  Its  cry  produced  in  me  such  a 
mingled  feeling  that  I  was  instantly  determined  to  recompense 
it  for  the  injury  I  had  done  it  by  stabbing  myself  with  the  small 
sword.  The  blow  struck  on  the  left  breast,  and  went  several 
inches  deep.  I  drew  forth  the  steel,  and  the  effect  was  an 
instant  gush  of  blood,  which  I  perceived  as  I  descended  the 
stairs  became,  with  the  pain,  more  perceptible." 

The  cry  of  anguish  of  the  victim  under  the  hands  of  his 
murderer,  brought  in  a  few  seconds  thither  the  family  and 
inmates  of  the  house ;  but  the  horrible  spectacle  must  naturally 
so  violently  have  affected  them,  that  they  scarcely  retained  a 
clear  remembrance  of  the  first  moments  which  followed  the 
discovery,  According  to  Sand's  own  account,  as  they  bore 
Kotzebue  into  the  next  room,  the  wild  outcry  and  deep  alarm 
sunk  by  degrees  ;  the  whole  room  as  well  as  the  open-standing 

9* 


102  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

door  was  left  vacant,  and  he  had  time  to  descend  the  steps  and 
reach  the  outer  door.  When,  however,  he  came  there,  he 
found  already  many  other  persons  collected  by  the  outcry,  and 
must  then  have  despaired  of  his  escape,  and  therefore  sought 
to  secure  the  publication  of  his  "  Death-Blow."  His  original 
intention,  that  of  sticking  it  up  somewhere  with  the  small 
dagger,  was  prevented  by  his  having  let  it  fall  during  the 
action?  and  he  therefore  took  the  paper  from  his  pocket,  and 
delivered  it  to  the  servant,  who  was  then  rushing  out  of  the 
house  to  call  the  watch,  saying,  "  There,  take  that !"  Then 
cried  Sand  with  a  loud  voice,  to  the  people  who  had  run 
together, — "Live  for  ever,  my  German  Fatherland,  and  we 
amongst  the  German  people,  who  strive  to  advance  the  con- 
dition of  a  pure  humanity !" 

He  then  kneeled  down,  and  said  in  a  low  voice, — "  I  thank 
Thee,  God,  for  thy  victory ;"  prayed,  placed  with  both  hands 
the  small  sword  against  his  breast,  and  drove  it  directly  and 
deliberately  into  it  till  it  stood  fast ;  then  withdrew  his  hands 
and  fell  forward  on  his  right  side.  The  people  who  hurried  to 
the  spot,  found  him  lying  in  his  blood,  drew  forth  the  dagger, 
and  washed  the  wound  with  vinegar.  In  the  mean  time  the 
watch  and  the  police  had  arrived,  and  the  murderer  under  the 
usual  guard  was  carried  on  a  handbarrow  to  the  hospital. 

Kotzebue  died  in  the  arms  of  his  daughter.  It  was  probably 
the  first  blow,  which,  piercing  the  pericardium  and  the  artery 
of  the  lungs,  caused  his  speedy  death. 

Sand,  on  the  day  following  the  murder  was  in  a  greatly 
excited  state.  His  features  changed  rapidly,  his  eyes  now 
gloomy  and  wildly  rolling,  now  soft  and  swimming  with  tears. 
His  wounds  were  cicatrized  in  about  a  fortnight,  but  an 
internal  extravasation  of  blood  ensuing,  made  the  opening  of 
the  cavity  of  the  chest  necessary,  which  the  then  Professor 
Chelius  from  Heidelberg  performed.  Sand  submitted  himself 
quietly  to  the  operation,  and  afterwards  begged  the  surgeon  to 
excuse  him  for  some  exclamations  of  pain  during  the  operation. 
His  behaviour  during  his  whole  imprisonment  was  praise- 
worthy. His  frame  of  mind  appeared  calm  and  quiet,  and  he 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  103 

seemed  to  wait  his  fate  with  resignation.  Only  twice,  in  par- 
ticular, was  he  seen  to  break  out  into  passionate  weeping ; 
once,  as  he  was  conveyed  from  the  hospital  to  the  House  of 
Correction,  and  the  second  time,  as  a  letter  from  his  parents 
was  read  to  him,  in  which  they  gave  him  their  blessing;  but 
he  sought  anxiously  to  hide  these  tears,  as  evidences  of  weak- 
ness. He  repented  his  attempt  at  self  murder,  as  a  cowardly 
act,  and  followed  the  prescriptions  of  his  physician  with  re- 
gularity. He  was  thus  soon  so  far  restored  that  the  trial  could 
take  place. 

This  was  entered  into  with  all  possible  gentleness;  and  he 
experienced  generally  throughout  it  a  mild  treatment.  A  visit 
which  his  mother  and  brother  offered  to  make  him  he  declined, 
on  the  ground  of  sparing  to  all  parties  the  pain  of  such  a 
parting. 

The  .trial  for  the  murder  went  on  quickly  at  first,  but  after- 
wards became  more  complicated,  on  account  of  the  documents 
which  were  found  amongst  Sand's  papers,  concerning  the 
Burschenschaft  and  such  matters.  These  occasioned  an  especial 
commission  to  be  named,  which  put  itself  in  communication 
with  commissions  afterwards  named  at  Weimar,  Darmstadt, 
and  Giessen,  and  subsequently  with  the  Ministry  of  Police  at 
Berlin,  so  far  as  their  inquiries  might  have  an  influence  or 
throw  any  light  on  Sand's  act.  From  the  report  of  these 
inquiries  we  have  drawn  the  preceding  notices  of  his  life,  and 
it  may  yet  be  permitted  us  to  say  a  few  words  on  the  force  of 
some  actuating  causes  which  could  lead  so  excellent  a  cha- 
racter, as  Sand  otherwise  was,  to  such  a  deed. 

Sand's  early  youth  fell  in  a  time  when  all  Germany  breathed 
hatred  to  its  oppressors.  From  this  source  he  drew  the  most 
glowing  antipathy  to  the  French,  and  enthusiasm  for  his  native 
country.  Traits  of  fanaticism,  and  a  certain  touch  of  religious 
enthusiasm,  all  must  have  remarked  in  him  who  have  read  the 
foregoing  pages,  and  a  degree  of  vanity  which  drove  him  to 
distinguish  himself  from  the  common  herd  by  something 
peculiar.  Thus  he  subscribed  himself,  as  a  genuine  German, 
instead  of  Karl  Ludwig,  "  Kerl  Chlodowig,"  in  the  ancient 


104  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

style,  and  afterwards  he  used  the  signature,  "  German  Brother 
of  Fichtelberge."  Then  he  made  himself  conspicuous  in 
Tubingen  by  a  very  singular  dress.  His  desire,  however,  to 
serve  his  country  remained  ungratified,  and  he  returned  from 
his  campaign  as  so  many  others,  casting  his  glance  forward, 
to  see  whether  Germany,  which  had  purchased  its  external 
peace  through  so  much  bloodshed,  possessed  internal  peace  and 
deserved  happiness.  At  the  same  time,  his  proneness  to  mys- 
ticism was  undeniable.  In  his  speculations  upon  religion, 
morals,  constitutions  of  states  and  laws,  one  finds  many  con- 
tradictions. Thus,  he  regarded  the  Divine  laws  not  so  much 
positive  commands  as  monitory  precepts,  by  which  man, 
according  to  his  conviction,  can  regulate  his  conduct.  When 
he,  whose  favourite  reading  was  the  Bible  and  the  writings  of 
Thomas  a  Kempis,  yet  felt  a  certain  disbelief  in  the  revealed 
religion,  it  was  truly  a  great  inconsistency  to  desire  that  an 
immediate  revelation  from  above  should  be  made  to  himself. 
Thus,  he  says  amongst  other  things : — "  He  prayed  to  God 
daily  for  knowledge  and  enlightenment.  If  he,  through  divine 
revelation,  could  learn  that  his  act  was  wrong,  he  would 
repent  it  every  hour ;  but  hitherto  nothing  of  the  kind  has 
happened."  "  My  own  conviction,"  said  he,  "  is  my  law.  I 
act  right  whenever  I  follow  it.  It  guides  me  better  than 
divine  or  human  precepts."  According  to  these  principles  he 
would  only  acknowledge  laws  except  in  so  far  as  they  seemed 
reasonable  to  him.  Above  all  things  displeased  him,  the 
division  of  Germany  into  separate  states, — he  would  have  one 
Germany  and  one  church;  but  when  he  demanded — not  for 
himself  alone,  but  for  the  whole  people— this  freedom  of 
thought  and  will,  he  was  in  contradiction  to  himself  again, 
since  he  would,  to  a  certain  degree,  force  this  reform  upon  all, 
in  opposition  to  his  conceived  freedom;  nay,  held  it  as  al- 
lowable, to  take  out  of  the  way,  with  the  dagger,  whoever 
placed  himself  as  an  enemy  in  the  path  of  this  reform ;  yes, 
and  called  upon  the  people  also  to  do  the  same.  And  this  he 
did,  without  sufficiently  understanding  the  laws  and  circum- 
stances of  his  Fatherland,  as  appears  by  his  declaration.  It  is 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  105 

to  be  supposed  that  the  spirit  which  formerly  actuated  the 
Burschenschaft,  had  an  influence  upon  the  developement  of  his 
ideas ;  but  it  is  false,  when  it  is  asserted  that  the  Burschen- 
schaft was  privy  to  his  deed,  or  approved  it.  Sand  had  mis- 
understood some  doctrines  of  Schelling's  philosophy,  and  had 
fitted  these  misconceptions  into  his  system,  as  well  as  many 
others  which  he  had  drawn  from  the  lectures  of  his  teachers, 
especially  those  of  the  historian  Luden.  All  his  teachers 
praised  his  restless  diligence,  without  ascribing  to  him  either 
particular  talent  or  great  strength  of  judgment.  He  entangled 
himself  in  a  system  of  sophistry  which  he  regarded  as  the 
firmest  truth.  When  a  man  frequently  pronounces  any  thing 
to  be  true,  he  comes  at  last  to  believe  it  so,  however  contrary 
it  be  to  common  sense.  Thus  Sand  over-estimated  the  evil 
influence  which  Kotzebue  exercised  through  his  writings, 
without  making  himself  sufficiently  acquainted  with  these 
writings.  Thus  he  imagined  that  the  governments  were  not 
strong  enough  to  repress  this  nuisance;  and  that  the  writers 
who  contended  against  Kotzebue  were  powerless  against  this 
literary  tyrant.  He  therefore  believed  himself  called  to  take 
the  enemy  of  truth  out  of  the  way.  He  communicated  his 
resolution  to  no  one,  and  was  so  convinced  of  the  meritorious 
nature  of  his  action — which  he,  moreover,  justified  by  his 
maxim,  the  "  end  hallows  the  means" — that  to  his  last  moment 
he  never  repented  of  it.  For  the  rest,  he  endeavoured  with  all 
his  power,  to  shield  others  from  the  evil  consequences  that 
might  have  reached  them  from  his  action,  and  therefore,  when 
for  their  advantage  he  stated  many  things  that  were  not  true, 
he  is  on  that  account  to  be  judged  leniently.  All  these  circum- 
stances were  well  weighed  by  his  judges,  as  ground  of  excuse 
so  far  as  they  might  contribute  to  the  mitigation  of  his  punish- 
ment. Sand's  counsel  on  the  trial  was  the  Licentiate  Riittger. 
The  final  judgment  of  the  court  condemned  him  to  death  with 
the  sword.  This  judgment  of  the  5th  of  May  was  confirmed 
by  the  Grand  Duke  on  the  12th,  and  arrived  at  Mannheim  on 
the  17th  of  the  same  month. 

At  this  latter  period,  the  health  of  the  culprit  had  so  much 


106  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

improved  that,  according  to  the  official  medical  report,  he  was 
in  a  condition  to  rise  from  his  bed  with  help  of  his  attendants, 
to  continue  some  hours  up,  and  to  take  his  meals  sitting  in  his 
room. 

On  the  morning  of  the  17th  of  May,  at  half-past  ten  o'clock, 
the  sentence  of  death  was  formally  read  to  Sand,  in  the  pre- 
sence of  two  officers  of  the  court,  whereupon,  permission  being 
allowed,  he  dictated  the  following  protocol: — "  This  hour,  and 
the  honourable  judges  with  the  final  decision,  were  welcome. 
He  would  fortify  himself  in  the  strength  of  his  God ;  since  he 
had  often  and  clearly  made  known  his  opinion,  that  amongst 
all  mortal  sorrows,  none  could  so  much  afflict  him  as  to  live 
on  without  being  able  to  serve  the  Fatherland,  and  the  highest 
aims  of  humanity.  He  died  willingly,  since  he  could  no  longer 
work  in  love  for  the  Idea — since  he  could  no  longer  be  free. 
So  approached  he  the  portals  of  eternity,  with  a  glad  mind, 
and  with  the  most  thorough  internal  conviction,  which  he  had 
always  entertained,  that  the  true  good  upon  earth  can  only 
come  forth  from  the  strife  of  conflicting  passions,  and  that  he 
who  will  work  for  the  highest  and  divine,  must  be  a  leader 
and  a  member  of  a  party.  He  cherished  the  hope  through  his 
death,  to  satisfy  those  whom  he  hated  and  who  hated  him ;  and 
again,  to  content  those  with  whom  he  agreed  in  opinion,  and  in 
whose  love  consisted  his  earthly  happiness.  Death  was  wel- 
come to  him,  since  he  yet  felt  the  strength  in  him  necessary, 
by  the  help  of  God,  to  enable  him  to  die  like  a  man." 

The  20th  of  May  was  appointed  for  the  execution,  and  till 
this  period  the  governor  of  the  House  of  Correction  was  in- 
structed to  admit  all  proper  persons  that  the  prisoner  might 
desire  to  see,  especially  the  Protestant  ministers,  and  to  comply 
with  all  reasonable  wishes  of  the  condemned. 

Sand  displayed  the  same  fortitude  as  on  the  publication  of 
the  sentence  of  death.  He  made  the  request  that  day,  that  it 
might  be  ordered  that  no  clergyman  should  attend  him  to  the 
place  of  execution,  and  gave  as  his  reason,  that  the  attendance 
of  criminals  to  the  place  of  doom,  was  a  degradation  of  the 
clerical  order  and  of  religion.  That  religion  must  lie  in  the 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  107 

heart,  and  could  not,  especially  amid  such  a  tumult,  proceed 
from  external  things.  As  all  the  representatives,  even  of  the 
clergy  present,  could  not  alter  his  opinions  on  this  point,  it  was 
conceded,  and  his  request  allowed. 

At  five  o'clock  of  the  morning  of  the  20th,  Sand  was  placed 
in  a  low  open  chaise,  within  the  court  of  the  Bridewell,  the 
door  being  still  closed.  He  was  attended  by  the  superintendent 
of  the  prison,  at  his  own  request,  that  he  might  help  to  support 
him,  particularly  in  mounting  the  scaffold.  Two  other  masters 
of  the  House  of  Correction  were  ordered  to  keep  near  the 
carriage.  Sand  was  clad  in  a  dark-green  great-coat,  linen 
trousers,  and  laced  boots,  without  any  covering  on  his  head. 
The  carriage  in  which  he  sat,  as  well  as  the  one  following 
with  the  officers  of  justice,  was  surrounded  by  the  officials  of 
the  House  of  Correction,  and  the  squadron  of  cavalry  ordered 
for  the  ^occasion.  The  train  proceeded  to  a  meadow  lying  a 
little  without  the  city  gate,  in  which  the  scaffold  was  erected, 
and  which  was  guarded  by  a  detachment  of  infantry. 

The  government  deemed  these  precautions  necessary  in 
order  to  frustrate  any  attempt  at  liberation  of  the  prisoner  on 
the  part  of  the  students.  In  fact,  it  is  yet  often  related,  that 
a  great  number  of  the  Burschen  rode,  in  the  early  morning, 
from  Heidelberg,  well  provided  with  swords  and  fire-arms, 
with  the  intent  to  snatch  Sand  out  of  the  hands  of  justice ;  that 
the  keeping  secret  the  day  fixed  for  the  execution,  had  made 
it  impossible  for  them  to  obtain  sufficiently  early  intelligence ; 
and  that  in  consequence,  though  riding  the  whole  way  at  the 
highest  speed,  they  arrived  too  late  on  the  spot,  where,  cursing 
their  evil  star,  they  discharged  their  pistols  into  the  ground. 
The  whole  story,  however,  is  a  fable,  and  it  is  certain,  that  by 
the  wiser,  and  probably  the  greater  part  of  the  Burschenschaft, 
even  as  little  as  by  the  rest  of  the  public,  was  Sand's  murder- 
deed  approved  ;  and  if  at  the  moment  he  was  generally  pitied, 
and  it  was  wished  that  a  better  fate  had  awaited  him,  yet  none 
but  a  few  political  fanatics  could  pronounce  the  punishment 
unjust. 

Sand  was  lifted  out  of  the  carriage,  and  mounted  the  scaffold 


108  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

himself,  supported  by  the  arms  of  the  two  Bridewell  masters. 
Arrived  upon  it,  he  turned  himself  round  towards  the  crowd, 
then  threw  the  handkerchief,  which  he  held  in  his  hand,  forci- 
bly down,  with  rolling  eyes ;  lifted  his  hand  on  high,  as  if  he 
swore  an  oath,  turned  his  eyes  towards  heaven,  and  then  caused 
himself  to  be  led  to  the  chair  of  execution,  where  at  his  parti- 
cular request,  he  remained  standing  till  the  preparations  of  the 
execution  were  completed.  The  sentence  of  death  was  there- 
upon read  with  a  loud  voice  by  the  actuary,  and  then  the  hands 
and  body  of  the  delinquent  fast  bound  to  the  pillar.  As  the 
executioner  bound  his  hands,  Sand  said  to  him  in  a  low  voice, 
"  Don't  bind  me  too  fast,  or  it  will  hurt  me."  After  his  eyes 
were  bound  the  sentence  was  completed,  his  head  being  severed 
from  his  body  at  one  blow,  and  hung  only  by  a  part  of  the 
skin,  which  was  immediately  divided  by  the  sword. 

The  whole  passed  over  with  the  greatest  order,  and  with  the 
deepest  silence  of  the  spectators,  except  that  at  the  moment  of 
the  fatal  blow,  was  heard  exclamations  of  pity.  Many  students 
and  other  spectators  rushed  to  the  scaffold,  in  order  to  dip  their 
handkerchiefs  in  Sand's  blood,  or  to  cut  small  pieces  of  wood 
from  the  scaffold  as  mementos. 

Sand  had  addressed  through  the  whole  time  nothing  to  the 
public.  A  short  time  before  his  execution,  he  was  heard  alone 
to  speak  as  to  himself, — "  God  give  me  in  my  death  much  glad- 
ness— it  is  completed — I  die  in  the  mercy  of  my  God !" 

He  died  with  much  fortitude  and  presence  of  mind,  at  half- 
past  five  o'clock.  His  corpse  with  the  severed  head  was  soon 
after  laid  in  the  prepared  coffin,  and  this  was  immediately 
nailed  up.  The  military  then  guarded  the  remains  back  to  the 
House  of  Correction ;  and  on  the  following  night  at  eleven 
o'clock  they  were  buried  in  the  cemetery  of  the  Lutheran 
church  near  the  House  of  Correction. 

Kotzebue's  dwelling,  and  the  chamber  where  the  murder 
was  committed,  are  yet  shown  in  Mannheim  ;  and  it  is  said  that 
the  spots  of  blood  on  the  wall  have  continually  reappeared  in 
spite  of  being  many  times  painted  over. 

The  scaffold,  according  to  custom,  became  the  perquisite  of 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  109 

the  executioner,  who  came  from  Heidelberg.  The  stranger  may 
observe  a  small  garden-house  which  was  built  out  of  this  mate- 
rial, as  he  goes  towards  the  Bierhalter-hof,  by  the  way  of  "  The 
Three  Troughs,"  as  it  is  called.  To  this  house  for  some  years, 
the  Burschenschaft  were  accustomed  to  go  on  the  anniversary 
of  Sand's  execution,  in  procession,  and  there  with  singing,  and 
probably  an  oration,  paid  their  respect  to  his  memory.  Even 
those  who  did  not  approve  of  murder  as  a  mere  political  reform, 
yet  were  glad  that  Kotzebue  was  out  of  the  way,  and  pitied 
and  even  honoured  Sand  as  a  devoted  and  high-minded,  though 
misguided  martyr  to  their  cause. 

If  the  act  of  Sand,  perpetrated  upon  a  man  who  neither  in 
public  nor  in  private  life  enjoyed  its  respect,  excited  in  the  public 
mind  so  much  just  displeasure,  how  much  more  must  that  have 
been  the  case  on  the  villanous  attack  upon  the  life  of  one  whom 
so  many  social  virtues  adorned.  The  attempt  to  murder  Ibell, 
the  President  of  the  First  Chamber  of  Nassau,  in  the  following 
year,  by  the  fanatic  Loning,  increased  the  consternation  of  the 
rulers  and  the  credibility  of  the  charge  that  Germany,  and  espe- 
cially its  rising  generation,  was  seized  with  a  revolutionary  diz- 
ziness. It  appeared  clear  that  the  spirit  which  had  formerly 
arisen  from  the  salvation  of  the  governments,  had  now  taken  a 
decided  tendency  to  their  destruction;  and  instead  therefore  of 
attempting  to  conciliate  by  liberal  concessions,  necessity  com- 
manded towards  it  a  system  of  vigorous  repression.  The  con- 
gress of  sovereigns  assembled  at  Aix-la-Chapelle  in  1818,  had 
already  turned  its  attention  to  the -critical  state  of  feeling  in 
Germany.  Whilst  France  had  become  so  quiet  that  the  Con- 
gress ordered  its  evacuation  by  the  army  of  occupation,  Ger- 
many became  a  new  subject  of  anxiety.  It  was  Sand's  mad 
murder-deed  which  first  made  this  manifest,  and  produced  this 
reaction  on  the  part  of  the  governments.  In  August,  1819, 
many  German  ministers  and  diplomatists  met  on  this  subject  at 
Karlsbad.  The  excellent  Karlsbad  resolutions,  which  were 
framed  at  this  meeting,  were  on  the  20th  of  September  of  the 
same  year,  published  by  the  Confederation  of  States,  as  the 
Confederation  Resolutions.  These,  in  order  to  prevent  the 

10 


HO  THE  NARRATIVE  OF 

aberrations  of  the  youth,  ordained  a  strict  oversight  over  both 
teachers  and  learners  in  this  respect,  and  that  a  government 
inspector  extraordinary  should  be  appointed  to  every  university 
to  observe  the  teachers,  and  to  restrain  the  scholars  within  the 
bounds  of  discipline  and  order. 

The  Karlsbad  resolutions  in  reference  to  unions,  and  espe- 
cially the  Burschenschaft,  say : — "  The  long  existing  laws 
against  both  secret  and  unauthorized  unions  in  the  universities, 
shall  be  maintained  in  their  greatest  force  and  stringency,  and 
particularly  shall  be  the  more  vigorously  exercised  towards  the 
union  instituted  within  these  few  years,  under  the  name  of  a 
universal  Burschenschaft :  as  at  the  foundation  of  this  union  lies 
the  totally  inadmissible  presupposition  of  a  lasting  association 
and  correspondence  between  the  different  universities.  The 
government  inspectors  shall  make  it  a  duty  to  exercise  an  espe- 
cial watchfulness  in  regard  to  this  point.  The  governments  are 
agreed  upon  this,  that  individuals  who,  after  the  publication  of 
these  resolutions,  shall  be  found  to  have  remained  members  of 
such  secret  or  unauthorized  unions,  or  shall  have  entered  into 
such,  shall  not  be  permitted  to  hold  any  public  office."  Thus,  the 
act  of  Sand,  as  is  uniformly  the  case  with  wild  and  fanatical 
deeds  of  violence,  had  the  very  contrary  effect  to  that  which  he 
purposed,  and  instead  of  serving  and  establishing  the  Burschen- 
schaft, hastened  its  public  denouncement  and  suppression.  In 
all  the  German  states,  the  freedom  of  the  press  was,  moreover, 
abolished,  so  that  in  no  German  state  could  a  manuscript  be 
submitted  to  the  press  without  censorship.  Finally,  also,  a  cen- 
tral commission  of  inquiry  was  established  in  Maintz  for  the 
finding  out  of  all  demagogical  schemes.  The  Prussian  govern- 
ment in  particular  went  to  work  with  pre-eminent  energy  and 
vigour,  and,  by  its  persecution  of  many  distinguished  men,  for- 
feited a  portion  of  that  public  respect  which  it  had  acquired 
through  its  strenuous  exertions  for  the  liberation  of  Germany 
from  the  French,  and  through  other  popular  endeavours. 

The  repose  of  Germany  during  the  political  storms  which  in 
the  following  years  shook  foreign  countries,  at  length  put  an  end 
to  the  government  alarms  from  demagogical  agitations.  The 


KARL  LUDWIG  SAND.  m 

political  inquisitions  and  persecutions  ceased  by  degrees;  the 
punishment  suspended  over  the  erring,  became  so  much  the 
milder  as  fewer  aberrations,  in  consequence  of  the  established 
regulations,  arose  to  demand  the  care  of  the  administrations.  If 
therefore  the  impulse  which  the  German  spirit  had  acquired  in 
the  Liberation  War  had  caused  it  to  rush  over  its  appropriate 
limits,  the  German  nature  yet  returned  speedily  to  its  inherent 
morality  and  propriety;  and  by  its  unshakable  loyalty  to  its 
hereditary  princes,  and  relations,  verified  that  old  praise, — that 
in  Germany  good  morals  have  more  power  than  elsewhere  good 
laws. 


At  the  breaking  up  of  the  Burschenschaft  at  Jena,  the  26th  of 
November,  1819,  the  following  song  was  sung;  which  we  there- 
fore give  as  one  of  the  most  celebrated. 

WE  BUILDED  OURSELVES. 

We  builded  ourselves  a  house, 

Stately  and  fair, 
And  there  in  God  confided, 

Spite  tempest,  storm,  and  care. 

We  lived  there  so  trustful, 

So  friendly,  so  free, 
'Twas  hateful  to  the  wicked 

Such  honest  men  to  see ! 

They  wronged  us,  they  charged  us 

With  treason  and  shame, 
They  strove  our  fair  young  Freedom 

To  curse  and  to  defame. 

What  God  laid  upon  us 

Was  misunderstood ; 
Our  unity  excited 

Mistrust  e'en  in  the  good. 


112  KARL  LUDWIG  SAND. 

They  brand  it  as  sinful — 
They  cheat  themselves  sore — 

The  form  it  may  be  broken ; 
The  love  lives  evermore. 

The  form  has  been  broken, 
The  ruins  lie  low ; 

Yet  what  they  have  discovered 
Is  merely  smoke  and  show. 

Our  riband  is  severed, 
Of  black,  red,  and  gold, 

Yet  God  has  it  permitted ; 
Who  can  his  will  unfold ! 

Then  let  the  house  perish ! 

What  matters  its  fall] 
The  soul  lives  yet  within  us, 

And  God's  the  strength  of  all ! 


CHAPTER  VI. 


CEREMONIAL  INTRODUCTIONS  TO  UNIVERSITY  AND  BURSCHEN  LIFE. 


Great  need  hath  man  of  brother  man 

To  reach  his  noblest  aim ; 

He  moves  but  in  the  general  plan. 

Fly  then  the  wolf-bewasted  strand, 
And  knit  life's  strong  and  social  band. 

Schiller. 


THE  youth  of  Germany  has  awoke  out  of  the  dreams  of 
Burschenschaft  freedom;  and  the  sounding  rush  of  steam- 
engines  will  probably  not  permit  them  easily  to  fall  again  into 
this  giddy  trance.  The  bond  of  an  universal  Burschenschaft  no 
longer  embraces  the  whole  body  of  German  students,  but  the 
professors  of  every  political  as  well  as  religious  creed  move 
amongst  each  other  in  manifold  circles.  Like  ignes  falui 
flicker  here  and  there  yet,  Burschenschaft  ideas,  but  their  flame 
has  seldom  strength  to  burn,  and  soon  expires  again  for  want  of 
fuel,  which,  in  fact,  is  diligently  withdrawn :  still  has  its  flame, 
ever  and  anon,  in  recent  times,  hoisted  on  the  mountain  tops, 
streamed  up  a  lightening  fire-pillar  of  Freedom ;  but  the  rulers 
of  Germany  have  speedily  smothered  it,  anxiously  watching  lest 
the  political  fabric  raised  with  so  much  toil,  should  become, 
with  all  its  stockwork  and  timbers,  a  prey  to  the  devouring 
element.  They  have  also  taken  care  that  the  youth  shall  not, 
forgetting  his  original  duty,  fall  into  this  labyrinth.  During  his 

10* 


114  CEREMONIAL  INTRODUCTION 

period  of  study,  only  too  often  is  he  reminded  by  the  ever- 
present  sense  of  the  government  examination,  that  he  is  a 
citizen  of  a  German  state.  Is  it  to  be  feared,  that  we  have 
fallen  into  the  opposite  extreme;  that  the  zeal  for  the  political 
and  literary  freedom  of  Germans  is  extinguished ;  and  that  a 
stupid  and  creeping  slavery  has  taken  its  place?  No,  thank 
God,  we  are  not  yet  come  so  far  as  that.  A  striking  testimony 
of  this,  is  the  sentiment  which  just  recently  has  made  itself  felt 
as  the  common  spirit  of  Germany  against  France,  glowing  with 
the  enthusiasm  of  former  years,  and  to  which  that  new  Rhine 
song  of  Bekker — "  They  shall  not  have  it !" — owes  its  origin. 
So  far  as  regards  academical  freedom,  it  it  is  not  to  be  denied 
that  in  some  states  an  overstrained  severity  of  government 
examinations  of  students  begins  to  display  a  mischievous  influ- 
ence.* The  young  man  having  this  image  of  terror  perpetually 
before  his  eyes,  prosecutes  his  studies  in  a  manufacturing  style, 
which  crushes  every  freer,  fresher  aspiration  after  human  im- 
provement. Yet  one  comes  back  to  one's  self  by  this  means, 
from  that  abortive  condition  of  a  false  and  overdriven  anxiety 
for  the  common  good ;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  the  governments 
were  wise  enough  to  perceive,  that  the  freedom  of  the  universi- 
ties could  not  be  too  much  circumscribed  without  damage  to  the 
pursuit  of  knowledge  itself;  for  this  freedom  is  universally  recog- 
nised as  the  ground  on  which  an  active  pursuit  of  science  most 
flourishes.  Experience  has  sufficiently  proved  this:  those  uni- 
versities which  possess  that  freedom  in  the  most  perfect  degree, 
having  always  stood  the  highest  in  academical  reputation.  All 
mal-practices  have  been  properly  put  down ;  many  things  have 
been  necessarily  held  to  be  illegal  because  of  their  connexion 
with  other  things,  and  which  yet  have  been  tolerated,  and  thus 
in  this  middle  way  have  the  best  results  been  arrived  at.  Strip 
the  universities  of  all  their  privileges,  and  they  will  fall,  together 

*  No  person  in  Germany  can  fill  any  office  in  a  state,  not  even  that  of  a  post- 
master, or  captain  of  police,  nor  follow  any  of  the  high  professions,  those  of  law, 
divinity,  and  physic,  after  he  has  passed  his  college  examinations,  and  taken  his 
degree,  without  having  undergone  another  examination  before  a  board  expressly 
appointed  by  each  state. 


TO  UNIVERSITY  LIFE.  115 

with  the  schools,  to  the  ground,  and  no  longer  furnish  so  fine  a 
bridge  to  the  service  of  the  state.  Especially  necessary  to  their 
free  condition  appears  to  be  the  possession  of  their  own  court  of 
judicature,  which  has  the  peculiarity  of  leaving  a  wide  scope  of 
discretion  to  the  judges;  since  it  might  be  very  unjust  to  punish 
a  student,  were  it  ever  so  slightly,  who  enjoys  so  much  more 
freedom  than  a  citizen,  precisely  according  to  the  laws  of  the 
schools,  as  a  citizen  who  is  so  little  permitted  to  step  over  the 
laws  is  punished  by  the  laws  which  relate  to  him.  Germany 
may  be  proud  of  the  constitution  of  its  High  Schools,  and  must 
feel  grateful  to  the  governments  for  this  protection  of  academi- 
cal freedom,  as  it  is  bound  to  be  for  its  political  constitutions, 
through  which  a  beneficent  and  honourable  freedom  is  secured. 

Much  complaint  has  in  former  years  been  made,  that  the 
young  people  who  were  just  come  from  the  schools,  hurried  on 
by  Choree  life  and  their  companions,  become  so  engulfed  in  a 
whirlpool  of  dissipation,  that  during  the  first  half-year,  or  even 
the  whole  year,  they  never  perfectly  recover  themselves  from 
this  course  of  wild  pleasure.  This  destructive  and  so  much 
dreaded  course,  and  a  certain  constraining  influence  supposed 
to  proceed  from  the  unions,  and  which  uniting  itself  with  the 
fascination  of  Renommirend,  or  playing  off,  determined  Die 
Neulinge,  newlings  or  freshmen,  to  enter  into  such  unions,  were 
made  grounds  for  putting  down  such  unions  all  over  Germany; 
as  if  Chores  were  necessary  to  such  a  time-killing  career  of  dis- 
sipation. Others  have  insisted  that  the  newlings  must  be  com- 
pelled, by  stronger  regulations  and  a  certain  school  restraint,  to 
a  more  diligent  attendance  of  the  lectures  and  of  their  private 
studies. 

Apart  from  the  question  whether  one  may  and  can  compel  a 
young  man  of  that  age  to  unceasing  application,  it  may  be  fur- 
ther asked,  whether,  after  all,  this  half-year  spent  in  the  free 
enjoyment  of  life  must  be  an  actual  loss,  and  to  be  reckoned  an 
absolute  deduction  from  the  amount  of  study?  By  no  means. 
Truly,  if  study  consisted  in  learning  a  mass  of  facts  by  rote, 
then  might  we  reasonably  reckon  literary  and  scientific  acquisi- 
tions by  days.  But  let  any  one  reflect  how  a  youth  comes  from 


116  CEREMONIAL  INTRODUCTION 

school.  There  he  had  a  daily  task,  which  he  completed  as  a 
more  or  less  industrious  day-labourer  does  his.  He  had  also 
favourite  occupations  and  favourite  studies  besides,  but  entirely 
apart,  which  he  pursued  as  pleasant  recreations,  which  had 
nothing  in  common  with  the  tedious  school  labours.  Not  that 
there  are  no  exceptions  to  the  rule,  but  thus  it  is  commonly. 
The  time  now  approaches  that  he  must  undergo  a  rigorous 
Abiturienten-examen,  or  final  examination,  before  the  doors  of 
the  High  School  will  open  to  admit  him;  an  examination  which 
he  puts  out  all  his  strength  during  the  last  half-year  to  pass,  as 
he  sees  with  transport  the  university  years  presenting  themselves 
before  him.  Suddenly  he  becomes  a  wavering  skiff,  abandoned 
by  its  experienced  pilot,  to  drive  forth  into  the  midst  of  the  agi- 
tated sea  of  university  life.  His  whole  existence  must  from  this 
time  forward  tend  to  one  ultimate  object,  of  which  he  is  not 
himself  yet  clearly  conscious;  even  his  recreations  and  pleasures 
shall  only  serve  every  day  to  accomplish  him,  or  to  give  him 
new  strength  for  toil.  His  intellectual  labours  shall  henceforth 
bear  the  stamp  of  knowledge ;  but  the  transition  is  so  sudden, 
the  space  in  which  he  has  to  move  is  so  vast  compared  with 
the  narrow  bounds  which  have  hitherto  circumscribed  him ! 
His  sight  must  sharpen  itself,  that  rapidly  making  himself  master 
of  the  manifold  objects  that  surround  him,  he  may  reduce  them 
to  one  regular  scale,  and  so  magically  diminish  them  as  to 
inclose  them  in  his  own  bosom.  And  to  this  labour,  which 
appears  to  him  gigantic,  he  comes  exhausted  by  the  exertions  of 
the  time  just  past,  wearied  out  with  all  the  old  school  business. 
He  exerts  himself  to  comprehend  that  world  of  novelties,  but 
sinks  finally  overwhelmed  by  their  oppressive  greatness,  and 
probably  exclaims  with  the  scholar  in  Faust, — 

All  is  confused,  a  stunning  pain, 

As  whirled  a  mill-wheel  in  my  brain. 

Despairing  of  science,  he  throws  himself  into  the  arms  of 
pleasure.  He  drinks  with  full  draught  from  the  cup  of  joy,  and 
finds  himself  with  exultation  again  conscious  of  his  youthful 


TO  UNIVERSITY  LIFE.  j  17 

strength.  Full  of  proud  and  lofty  feeling,  he  now  rushes  forward 
in  the  new  and  open  path,  often  bursting  through  all  bounds. 
This  is  called  the  lost  time.  But  it  is  not  lost.  If  the  man  is  not 
to  be  overwhelmed  by  the  excess  of  external  influence,  if  he  is 
to  be  borne  through  all  without  loss  of  his  independence,  he 
requires  in  the  mean  time  such  a  period  of  rest ;  in  which,  from 
an  undisturbed  point  of  view,  he  call  look  back  into  the  past ; 
can  there  weigh  what  he  has  so  far  accomplished  ;  can  look 
forward,  and  acquire  a  clear  consciousness  of  his  future  pur- 
poses, and  can  gather  strength  for  the  necessary  enterprise. 
Thus,  in  the  transition  from  the  school  to  the  university,  this 
introductory  laziness  is  a  necessary  crisis  for  the  majority,  in 
order  to  shake  off  the  old  school  dust,  and  to  awake  to  a  new 
existence.  That  very  dissipation  must  throw  the  youth  back 
upon  knowledge.  He  has  now  learnt,  out  of  the  multitude  of 
things,  lo  choose  and  appropriate  those  which  befit  himself,  his 
character,  and  designs ;  he  has  learnt  to  maintain  his  indepen- 
dence in  the  midst  of  the  in-streaming  outer-world  ;  and,  finally, 
by  association  with  so  many  companions  who,  though  equally 
with  himself  gay  of  heart  and  enjoying  life,  are  still  happily 
prosecuting  the  acquisition  of  knowledge,  he  has  arrived  at 
higher  views  of  life,  and  of  individual  study.  He  is  now  first 
ripe  for  the  university. 

We  have  in  other  places  spoken  of  the  advantage  which  a 
young  man  derives  from  associate  life  with  so  many  others. 
He  who  desires  to  rule  or  to  exercise  an  influence  over  men, 
must  first  learn  to  live  amongst  many.  He  who  studies  a  science 
will  not  perpetually  confine  himself  to  one  work,  though  it  be 
that  of  a  most  celebrated  master,  but  will  compare  as  many  as 
possible,  that  amongst  all  their  theories  he  may  select  that  which 
most  meets  his  approbation,  or  may  create  a  new  one  for  him- 
self. Of  the  numbers,  moreover,  who  find  themselves  at  a 
High  School,  if  some  lose  sight  of  their  true  object,  and  sink  in 
the  slough  of  sensuality,  yet  the  far  greater  portion  pursue  the 
path  of  knowledge  with  zeal,  and  push  forward  on  the  direct 
course,  though  they  may  occasionally  diverge  into  the  smiling 
and  blooming  fields  that  lie  right  and  left,  to  gather  odorous 


118  CEREMONIAL  INTRODUCTION 

nosegays  to  bear  with  them  on  their  earnest  track.  Every  one 
of  these  wanderers  has  his  individual  theory  of  life,  of  morals, 
of  religion,  and  of  every  department  of  science  and  literature  ; 
and  it  betrays  a  self-punishing  conceit,  when  an  individual 
regards  his  own  views  as  so  exalted  that  they  need  no  compa- 
rison with  those  of  others,  and  when  he  can  learn  nothing  from 
this  intercourse.  Youth  seizes  upon  every  thing  so  freshly  and 
with  such  force,  and  endeavours  to  defend  it  against  the  en- 
croachments of  strangers.  Shall  a  young  man  only  educate 
himself  under  the  instructions  of  experienced  teachers  ?  Cer- 
tainly not.  He  must  live  amongst  those  who  will  hereafter  be 
his  fellow-labourers  in  life.  But  as  the  age  exerts  an  undeniable 
influence  on  the  greatest  men  that  it  produces,  and  even,  when  in 
other  respects  they  shoot  forth  far  beyond  their  time,  binds  them 
fast  to  the  time  with  the  strong  bonds  of  prospects  and  preju- 
dices ;  so  also  place  operates  materially  on  men  through  the 
influences  which  are  bound  upon  the  place. 

The  ton  which  predominates  in  a  High  School  leaves  not  its 
scholars  untouched,  or  that  ton  could  not  otherwise  perpetuate 
and  firmly  maintain  itself  there.  But  this  ton  is  the  product  of 
many  contingencies,  and  pervades  every  thing  which  comes  in 
contact  with  it.  We  noticed  the  ton  which  distinguishes  the 
university  of  Heidelberg  when  speaking  of  its  advantages.  This 
has  always  been  the  same;  and  those  of  Jena  and  Leipsic  have 
been  described,  according  to  their  individuality,  at  an  earlier 
period  by  Zacharias.  In  his  comic-heroic  poem,  as  Goethe 
himself  has  testified,  every  man  will  read  with  pleasure  how 
his  Renommist  was  conquered  by  the  love  of  the  gallant  city 
of  Leipsic : — 

My  song  the  hero  sings,  whom  courage,  sword  and  fighting 
Made  terrible  in  Jena,  in  Leipsic  quite  exciting; 
Who  oft  whole  hosts  assaulted  when  his  wrath  was  hot, 
As  hero  out  of  Jena  went,  but  in  Leipsic  conquered  not. 

We  have  also  a  drawing  of  four  universities  of  Germany,  of 
about  the  year  1730,  which  was  intended  to  indicate  their  peculiar 


TO  UNIVERSITY  LIFE. 

characteristics  at  that  period.  In  this  drawing  one  sees  first  a 
student  of  Leipsic,  a  young  gentleman  very  delicately  and 
smartly  dressed,  who  is  turning  as  towards  a  maiden,  and  say- 
ing daintily, — "  Dulcimene,  thou  hast  made  me  quite  in  love  with 
thee."  Near  him  stands  one  from  Halle — and  let  the  reader 
call  to  mind  that  August  Hermann  Fronken's*  death  had  occur- 
red about  three  years  before  that  time — he  is  dressed  in  black ; 
he  speaks  with  depressed  heart,  and  glancing  at  the  former 
students,  sighs  forth,  "  Him  will  God  chastise ;"  which  at  that 
period  truly,  here  and  there,  many  a  so-called  Waisenhausler — 
Orphan-Houser — out  of  an  extravagant  and  fiery  zeal,  and  on 
the  principle  of  a  false  devotion,  had  continually  in  their  mouths. 
To  him  succeeds  a  gay  student  of  Jena  in  uniform,  with  huge 
cocked  hat,  and  very  imposing  mustachios,  high  jack  boots  with 
pounded  spurs.  He  grasps  his  duelling  sword  fiercely,  and  ex- 
claims wrathfully,  "  The  thunder  shall  blast  him  that  dares  an 
insult."  At  last,  and  completing  the  group,  stands  a  Wirtem- 
berger,  with  a  full  cup  of  the  winking  kukkuk  (cuckoo) — that  is 
Wirtemberg  beer — with  winking  eyes  singing,  and  dancing  on 
one  leg — ex  pleno  poculo. 

We  have  already  stated  in  what  manner  a  newling  is  received 
as  an  academic  burger,  or  is  matriculated.  This  matriculation 
in  the  early  and  ruder  times  was  preceded  by  a  very  peculiar 
ceremony,  which  was  called  the  deposition.  This  deposition 
during  the  first  half  of  the  seventeeth  century  extended  over  the 
majority  of  the  German  universities,  Catholic  as  well  as  Pro- 
testant. From  the  description  which  Arnold  has  given  in  the 
Appendix  to  the  History  of  the  High  School  of  Konigsberg, 
extracted  from  the  dissertation  "  de  Ritu  Depositionis"  of  M. 
Sehme,  we  learn  the  following  particulars.  In  the  university 
where  the  deposition  was  customary,  the  newly-arrived  student, 
the  so-called  "Branen,"  or  Bacchant,  announced  himself  to  the 
dean  of  the  philosophical  faculty,  and  prayed  that  he  might, 
through  the  deposition,  be  received  amongst  the  number  of  the 
students.  When  the  Branen  or  Bacchants  amounted  to  a 

*  The  founder  of  the  Orphan-House. 


120  CEREMONIAL  INTRODUCTION 

certain  number,  the  dean  appointed  a  day  in  which  to  celebrate 
the  deposition,  and  summoned  besides  the  Branen,  the  depositor 
with  his  instruments,  and  an  amanuensis.  They  appeared  on 
the  appointed  day  before  the  dean.  The  depositor  in  the  first 
place  put  on  a  harlequin  dress,  caused  the  Branen  to  attire 
themselves  in  the  same  style,  and  put  on  them  other  ludicrous 
articles  of  costume,  especially  hats  or  caps  with  horns,  and 
distributed  amongst  them  the  instruments  with  which  the  depo- 
sition should  be  executed ;  coarse  wooden  combs,  shears,  augers, 
axes,  hatchets,  planes,  saws,  razors,  looking-glasses,  stools,  and 
so  forth.  When  now  the  Branen  were  properly  equipped,  the 
depositor  marshalled  them  in  rank  and  file,  placed  himself  at 
their  head,  and  conducted  them  to  the  hall  where  the  deposition 
should  be  performed,  and  there  addressed  a  speech  to  the  dean 
and  the  spectators,  who  consisted  of  students.  The  depositor 
commenced  the  deposition  by  striking  the  Branen  with  a  bag 
filled  with  sand  or  bran,  and  compelling  them  to  scamper  about 
with  all  manner  of  laughable  gestures  and  duckings  in  order  to 
escape  the  strokes  of  the  sand-bag.  He  then  propounded  to 
them  certain  questions  or  riddles,  and  they  who  did  not  answer 
them  quickly  and  well,  received  so  many  strokes  with  the  sand- 
bag, that  tears  often  started  from  their  eyes.  When  this  trial 
by  question  and  riddle  was  finished,  then  must  the  Branen  give 
up  the  instruments  which  they  had  hitherto  held  in  their  hands, 
and  lie  down  on  the  ground  in  such  a  manner  that  their  heads 
nearly  touched  each  other.  The  depositor  then  planed  their 
shoulders  as  they  thus  lay,  filed  their  nails,  pretended  to  bore 
through  and  saw  off  their  feet,  hewed  every  limb  of  their  bodies 
into  shape,  cleaned  their  ears,  knocked  off  their  goats  horns,  and 
tore  out  of  their  mouth  with  a  pair  of  great  tongs,  the  satyr's 
teeth  stuck  in  for  the  purpose.  After  the  Bacchants  were  thus 
properly  hewn,  planed,  unhorned,  and  unfanged,  they  were 
caused  to  seat  themselves  each  on  a  stool  with  only  one  leg. 
The  depositor  put  on  them  a  dirty  napkin,  soaped  them  with 
brickdust,  or  with  shoe-blacking,  and  shaved  them  so  sharply 
with  a  wooden  razor,  that  the  tears  often  started  from  their 
eyes.  The  combing  with  the  wooden  combs  was  equally 


TO  UNIVERSITY  LIFE.  121 

rugged,  with  which  in  some  places  the  depositor  commenced, 
and,  on  the  contrary,  in  others  ended.  Their  hair,  after  the 
combing,  was  sprinkled  with  shavings.  After  all  these  opera- 
tions the  depositor  drove  them  out  of  the  hall  where  these 
scenes  had  taken  place  with  his  sand-bag,  took  off  his  gro- 
tesque attire,  put  on  his  proper  costume,  and  commanded  the 
Branen  to  do  the  same.  This  being  done  the  depositor  recon- 
ducted  them  to  the  hall  which  they  had  just  quitted,  commended 
the  young  people  in  a  short  Latin  speech  to  the  dean,  and  prayed 
in  their  name  for  a  certificate  of  the  deposition.  The  dean 
answered  in  a  Latin  speech,  declared  the  ground  and  intention 
of  the  custom  of  the  deposition,  and  added  all  kinds  of  admo- 
nitions. Finally,  the  dean  gave  to  each  of  them  as  a  symbol 
of  wisdom  a  few  grains  of  salt  to  taste,  scattered  in  sign  of  joy 
some  drops  of  wine  over  their  heads,  and  handed  to  them  the 
certificate  of  the  accomplished  deposition. 

From  this  rude  custom,  which  here  and  there  expired  in  the 
beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century,  is  derived  the  circumstance 
that  a  new  student,  still,  before  he  can  be  matriculated,  must 
take  out  his  certificate  of  deposition.  In  Altorf,  the  deposition 
was  enacted  for  the  last  time  so  late  as  1753,  and  was,  in  fact, 
to  oblige  a  gentleman  of  high  consideration  who  brought  his  son 
to  enter  him  of  the  university,  and  wished  to  revive  a  lively 
remembrance  of  his  own  youth-time  by  seeing  the  deposition  of 
his  son. 

If,  in  past  times,  while  manners  were  so  rude,  the  teachers  of 
the  High  Schools  could  practise  so  barbarous  a  custom  towards 
the  freshmen,  it  may  well  be  supposed  that  the  students  did  not 
conduct  themselves  towards  the  Branen  more  gently.  These 
had  many  hardships  and  indignities  to  suffer  at  their  hands ;  and, 
as  was  the  case  in  many  of  the  schools  in  past  times,  must  per- 
form for  them  the  lowest  offices.  Lycurgus  himself  could  not 
create  for  his  laws  a  more  implicit  obedience  in  his  age,  than 
the  old  Houses  demanded  from  the  new-comers,  who  are  now 
no  longer  denominated  Branen,  but  Foxes.  As  already  observed, 
the  name  boot-fox  was  derived  from  this  fact,  that  these  fresh- 

11 


122  CEREMONIAL  INTRODUCTION 

men  must  black  the  boots  for  their  more  advanced  comrades, 
the  old  Houses  of  the  Chores. 

The  freshman,  or  fox,  is  now  bound  to  perform  many  little, 
but  by  no  means  degrading  or  injurious  services.  He  must  con- 
duct himself  discreetly,  may  not  mix  forwardly  in  the  conversa- 
tion of  the  old  Houses,  and  his  purse  is  laid  under  frequent 
requisitions.  Amongst  the  students  who  belong  to  no  union,  this 
is  not  so  much  the  case,  and  is  restricted  principally  to  this,  that 
the  fox  conducts  himself  not  too  assumingly,  and  now  and  then 
ponirt  something,  that  is — to  give  this  slang  phrase  by  an  Eng- 
lish one — pods  down  something;  that  is  to  say,  he  gives  an 
excursion  or  entertainment  to  them,  a  Kneiperei,  or  occasion  of 
social  fellowship  and  enjoyment.  This  he  can  the  better  do,  as 
the  superior  experience  of  the  older  students  in  all  the  regula- 
tions of  University  life,  and  in  particular  in  the  best  laying  out 
of  his  course  of  study,  are  of  the  greatest  service  to  him.  In 
the  aristocracy  of  the  Chores,  this  subordination  is,  indeed,  more 
despotic.  There  is  quickly  heard, — "  Silence,  fox !  speak  not 
when  old  bemossed  heads  are  speaking !" 

We  have  mentioned  the  general  services  which  the  fox  has 
to  perform,  but  he  has  also  to  suffer  at  the  hands  of  terrible  old 
Houses.  There  comes  perhaps,  a  bemossed  head  from  a  dis- 
tant university,  in  a  shockingly  broken  down  condition,  some- 
thing like  the  student  in  Hauff's  story,  who  travelled  with  Satan. 
Already  known  by  his  hero  deeds,  the  moment  that  he  arrives 
he  is  received  with  a  jubilee  of  acclamation.  "  Wiirger !  thou 
faithful  old  House !  cry  the  sons  of  the  Muses,  and  rush  down 
the  steps  into  his  arms.  The  smokers  forget  to  lay  down  their 
long  pipes,  the  billiard-players  still  hold  their  cues  in  their  hands. 
They  form  a  body-guard  singularly  armed,  around  the  arriver." 
— Hauff's  Memoirs  of  Satan. 

And  now,  scarcely  has  the  old  House  made  it  understood  that 
his  trousers  are  not  the  best  in  the  world,  or  that  his  boots  are 
no  longer  waterproof,  than  it  would  be  taken  very  ill  indeed  of 
a  fox  should  he  hesitate  to  supply  his  wants  to  the  very  best  of 
his  power.  He  must  feel  himself  particularly  honoured  if  he 


TO  UNIVERSITY  LIFE.  123 

gets  back  the  borrowed  garments  in  a  month  or  two,  just  in 
sufficient  condition  to  be  able  to  make  a  present  of  them  to  his 
shoe-black. 

For  a  long  time,  a  terrible  swordsman  belonged  to  one  of  the 
universities,  whose  mother  resided  in  the  place,  and  was  what 
the  students  term  a  Frass  philister,  or  eating  philistine,  or  who 
in  other  words  kept  an  eating-house  for  the  students,  as  is  very 
common  in  the  university  cities.  Her  table  could  promise  very 
little  satisfaction,  even  to  the  least  delicate  and  artistical  sto- 
machs; in  fact,  it  required  a  strong  dose  of  active  exercise 
before  dinner  to  enable  its  frequenters  to  make  an  attack  upon 
it,  and  another  as  active  after  dinner  to  conquer  the  dyspeptic 
symptoms  that  rapidly  followed  her  viands.  Yet  this  table  was 
always  crowded.  The  unhappy  foxes  had  much  rather  try 
their  teeth  on  the  culinary  productions  of  the  mother,  than  fall 
under  the  pitiless  sword  of  the  son. 

The  same  worthy  was  also  accustomed  to  borrow  ball-dresses, 
as  he  by  no  means  approved  of  swelling  the  profits  of  tailors ; 
and,  at  the  end  of  the  season,  sent  them  back  to  their  right 
owner  in  a  condition  fit  only  at  the  best  to  be  forwarded  to  the 
Jew. 

In  earlier  times,  the  foxes  were  expected  by  the  old  houses  to 
write  out  their  college  notes ;  and  hence  arose  the  anecdote,  that 
one  of  the  most  terrible  of  the  old  houses,  observing  a  blot, 
which  the  poor  copyist,  in  utter  fear,  had  made  upon  the  paper, 
asked  grimly,  pointing  to  it,  "Is  that  Douche,  fox?"  To  dou- 
chiren,  or  touchiren,  is  equivalent  in  meaning  to  giving  such  an 
offence  as  will  require  a  challenge.  Douche  is  Indian  ink,  and 
perhaps  it  would  be  in  vain  to  inquire  how  Indian  ink  came  to 
be  a  synonyme  for  a  challengeable  insult ;  the  horrified  and  inno- 
cent youth,  however,  who  understood  this  meaning,  answered 
with  precipitation,  "  Pardon  me,  it  is  ink."  That  is,  not  douche, 
or  Indian  ink,  nor  any  thing  meant  for  offence. 

When  a  fox  forgets  his  part,  he  is,  in  their  language,  imme- 
diately sent  to  rest.  Thus  it  happened  that  an  old  Bursche,  who 
probably  had  two  dozen  college  half-years  on  his  back,  at  a 
Kneip,  fell  into  a  dispute  with  a  conceited  fox.  The  fox  finally 


124  CEREMONIAL  INTRODUCTION 

felt  himself  insulted  by  various  expressions,  and  in  student- 
phrase,  gave  him  the  Dummer  junge — in  literal  meaning,  stupid 
youth,  but  in  their  language  a  challenge.  The  old  Bursche 
coolly  replied,  "  Stupid  I  may  be,  but  I  am  not  young"  A 
general  laugh  arose  at  this  repartee,  and  the  fox  -was  so  much 
pleased  with  it,  that  he  instantly  recalled  the  challenge. 

Another  anecdote  connected  with  the  same  custom,  is  this. 
A  fox  suffered  himself  to  become  the  bearer  of  a  challenge  ;  an 
office  which,  according  to  Chore  laws,  by  no  means  belonged 
to  him,  but  to  the  Chore-Bursche.  He  stepped,  full  of  self-com- 
placency on  account  of  his  important  commission,  but  yet  with 
some  anxiety,  into  the  lodging  of  the  bemossed  head,  and  spoke. 
"  Watzman  sends  you  a  Dummer  junge — a  stupid  youth"  "  Yes, 
I  see  him,"  coolly  answered  the  challenged,  glancing  contemp- 
tuously over  his  shoulder  at  him,  and  proceeding  with  his  writing 
at  his  desk  without  condescending  to  give  to  the  dumbfounded 
fox  another  look. 

The  student  receives  different  names,  according  to  the  dura- 
tion of  his  abode  at  college.  While  he  yet  vegetated  in  the 
gymnasium  he  was  a  Frosch — a  frog.  In  the  vacation  which 
lay  between  the  time  of  his  quitting  the  gymnasium  and  enter- 
ing the  university,  he  chrysalized  himself  into  a  mule,  and  on 
entering  the  university,  he  becomes  a  Kameel — a  Camel.  This 
happy  transition-state  of  a  few  weeks  gone  by,  he  comes  forth 
finally,  on  entering  a  Chore,  a  Fox,  and  runs  joyfully  into  the 
new  Burschen  life.  During  the  first  semester,  or  half-year,  he  is 
a  gold  fox,  which  means,  that  he  has  foxes,  or  rich  gold  in 
plenty  yet ;  or  he  is  a  Crass-fuchs,  or  fat  fox,  meaning  that  he 
yet  swells  or  puffs  himself  up  with  gold.  In  the  second  half- 
year  he  becomes  a  Brand-fucks,  or  fox  with  a  brand,  after  the 
foxes  of  Samson.  The  fox  year  is  then  over,  and  they  wash 
the  eyes  of  the  new-baked  Young  Bursche,  since  during  the  fox- 
year  he  was  held  to  be  blind,  the  fox  not  being  endued  with 
reason.  From  Young  Bursche  he  advances  next  to  Old 
Bursche,  and  then  to  Bemossed  Head,  the  highest  state  of 
honour  to  which  man  can  attain. 

As  the  student  has  given  to  these  different  periods  of  the  Bur- 


TO  UNIVERSITY  LIFE.  125 

schen  life  different  termini  technici,  so  he  has  generally  created 
new  words  for  so  many  new  circumstances;  for  the  same 
cogent  reasons  that  new  Latin  terms  must  be  created  for  many 
modern  things ;  and  the  creations  of  the  Bursche  stand  very  little 
in  excellence  behind  those  of  the  new  Latinisms.  We  could 
readily  furnish  a  small  lexicon  of  those  terms,  which,  however, 
we  may  very  well  spare  the  reader,  as  he  can  easily  select  such 
as  please  him  out  of  the  number  of  regular  student  expressions 
which  will  occur  in  these  pages.  We  will  here  give  a  few 
examples  from  the  learned  dissertation  of  Herr  Schluck,  with 
his  sagacious  and  humorous  explanations. 

Burse  hen-Comment. — The  rule  of  life  which  every  honorary 
Bursch  must  follow.  To  live  according  to  the  Burschen-Com- 
ment,  means  to  be  bound  by  the  laws  of  neither  God  nor  man, 
and  to  consider  oneself  as  better  than  all  other  men. 

1st  Proof. — Students  are  the  sons  of  the  Muses.  The  Muses 
are  goddesses.  Gods  and  goddesses  are  bound  by  no  laws ; 
therefore  neither  are  their  sons. 

2d  Proof. — It  belongs  to  unlimited  power  to  decide  with  the 
sword.  But  the  students  decide  with  the  sword,  therefore  have 
they  unlimited  power.  Unlimited  power  is  one  of  the  highest 
prerogatives.  Princes  possess  only  the  highest  prerogatives; 
therefore  the  students  are  princes.  Princes  are  exalted  above 
the  law,  so  also  are  the  students.  This  sentence  is  perhaps 
strengthened  by  the  old  song : — 

Burschen  are  kings, 
And  the  proof  is  here : 
They  drink  all  their  mothers' 
Pennies  in  beer. 

which,  however,  were  to  prove,  and  not  easily  to  prove,  on 
which  account  I  doubt  not  that  every  one  will  perceive  the  force 
of  the  reasons  I  have  assigned. 

They  consider  themselves  better  and  greater  than  all  other 
men.  At  least  they  are  firmly  persuaded  of  it.  But  a  firm  per- 
suasion is  the  same  thing  as  conviction.  He  who  is  convinced, 

11* 


126  CEREMONIAL  INTRODUCTION 

speaks  the  truth ;  therefore  the  students  are  better  and  greater 
than  all  other  men. 

To  make  a  Randal,  or  to  open  a  Randal,  means  to  kick  up  a 
row. 

Schisser,  from  the  French  word  chasse,  one  struck  in  flight, 
whence  Schasser,  or,  in  corrupt  speech,  Schisser,  means  a  fear- 
ful and  harefooted  man.  Hence  also  comes  the  technical 
phrase  "  to  be  in  Perschiss,"  which  indicates  the  most  extreme 
condition  of  contempt.  He  who  is  in  Verschiss,  is  shut  out  of 
all  respectable  society,  and  is  compelled  to  go  amongst  the 
Knoten,  or  lowest  of  the  low. 

Fuchs,  or  Fox. — This  name  is  derived  from  the  cunning  and 
slyness  of  foxes,  since  these  look  about  as  slily  and  cunningly, 
and  regard  every  one  as  their  enemy  and  assailant,  till  they 
are  rendered  tame  by  necessity  and  habit.  The  term  is  not 
injurious  as  applied  to  a  Freshman,  but  is  an  insult  to  an  old 
Bursche. 

Mucker,  Stubensitzer,  Kopf hanger,  Kessel,  Wurtzel, — Saint,  Stay- 
at-Home,  Head-hanger,  Kettle,  Root. — These  words  are  nearly 
synonymous,  and  indicate  a  man  who  scarcely  dares  to  breathe, 
or  to  step  over  the  door-sill ;  who  from  anxiety,  or  sanctimoni- 
9usness,  goes  with  his  head  hanging  down,  or  sits  as  continu- 
ally over  his  books  as  a  turkey-hen  upon  her  eggs,  or  a  kettle 
over  the  fire. 

Pflaster-treter,  Pavement-treader ;  Quark,  Curds. — These  are 
names  of  the  men  who  are  natives  of  the  city  or  its  vicinity. 
Pavement-treaders  are  those  who  were  born  on  the  ground  and 
site  of  the  university,  and  therefore,  from  youth  up,  have  trodden 
the  very  same  street-pavements.  The  pavement-treaders  are 
also  generally  styled  Patent-schissers,  since  they  must  conduct 
themselves  in  all  propriety,  being  under  the  eyes  of  their  parents ; 
must  go  about  in  gloves,  and  frocks,  or  untorn  coats,  and  not 
smoke  in  the  streets.  Curds  are  so  called  because  they  come 
only  a  few  miles  from  the  city,  and  to  whom,  therefore,  their 
mothers,  as  their  darlings,  can  send,  if  they  please,  a  dish  of 
curds  to  their  suppers. 

Kiimmelturk. — Is  a  compound  of  kiimmel  and  ttirk,  and  denotes 


TO  UNIVERSITY  LIFE.  127 

the  class  of  Braggadocios  and  Boasters,  who,  at  the  first  onset, 
rush  upon  the  enemy  with  furious  outcry  and  riot,  but  at  the 
smallest  show  of  real  danger  leap  back  like  Kummel,  cumin- 
seed,  which  a  person  attempts  to  mix  with  melted  lard.  This 
name  also  has  the  same  meaning  as  Quark,  or  Curds. 

Couc/ie,  Re-couche,  Contre-couche. — These  are  French  terms, 
with  which  silence  is  commanded ;  but  as  they  are  terms  com- 
monly used  to  hounds,  they  stand  properly  amongst  the  verbal 
injuries. 

Dummer  Junge,  Stupid  Youth. — Is  the  highest  and  most  cut- 
ting insult,  since  it  implies  a  denial  of  sound  manly  understand- 
ing and  strength  of  capacity  of  him  to  whom  it  is  applied. 

Schuppen  oder  Rennen. — To  scale,  as  you'd  scale  a  fish,  or 
to  run — meaning  that  poking  with  the  elbows,  when  two  meet 
and  neither  will  give  way.  This  is  a  real  injury. 

Dissertatio  de  Quomodone  seu  von  den  Burschen  Comment 
edita  *ab  renommista  rerum  Bursicosarum  experientissimo  eo- 
demque  intrepido  horibilique  Martiali  Schluck. 


If  the  newly  arrived  students  are  no  longer  subjected  by  their 
teachers  to  such  uncouth  customs,  as  this  deposition  was,  yet 
they  are  by  no  means  spared  certain  ceremonies  by  their  fel- 
low-students, if  they  wish  to  lay  claim  to,  and  arrive  by  degrees 
at,  the  titles  of  honour  connected  with  the  different  degrees  of 
standing  in  points  of  seniority  in  university  life.  Yet  these  are 
neither  so  barbarous  as  the  deposition,  nor  is  a  single  student 
compelled  to  take  part  in  them.  They  consist  of  some  merry 
formalities,  to  which  those  who  choose  submit  themselves,  and 
which,  though  solemn  age  may  smile  at  them,  may  be  readily 
excused  in  happy  and  careless  youth.  To  these  belong  the 
Fox-ride;  the  burning  of  the  incipient  Brand-Foxes;  and  the 
drumming  in  of  the  young  Burschen,  who  then  and  there  ripen, 
without  further  trouble,  into  old  Burschen. 

The  celebration  of  the  initiation  of  the  Foxes,  Brand-Foxes, 
and  Young  Burschen,  takes  place  on  one  and  the  same  evening, 


128  CEREMONIAL  INTRODUCTION 

at  a  Commers  appointed  for  the  purpose.  This  Commers  is 
always  fixed  for  one  of  the  special  Kneip  evenings,  and  the 
Chore  to  whom  the  Kneip-room  belongs  presides  on  the  occasion. 
The  candidates  for  initiation  announce  their  intentions  to  this 
Chore;  and  the  other  Chores  also  assemble  with  it  on  the 
appointed  day.  Their  place  of  meeting  is  one  of  the  most 
spacious  rooms  used  for  such  purposes,  which  is  embellished  as 
on  other  Commerses,  and  moreover  also,  graced  with  the  in- 
signia of  the  presiding  Chore. 

After  the  customary  singing  of  Der  Landesvater,  the  Land's- 
father,  the  assembled  throng  disperses  itself  in  a  circle  on  tables 
and  chairs  in  order  to  greet  the  expected  train.  At  the  long 
table,  at  which  they  are  accustomed  to  drink  beer  at  their 
Kneips,  sit  others,  especially  those  of  the  presiding  Chore,  and 
at  their  head  the  president,  the  drawn  sword  lying  before  him. 
All  the  spectators  are  well  provided  with  beer  and  pipes,  that 
they  may  be  able  to  enjoy  the  spectacle  the  more  agreeably. 
The  doors  of  the  hall  now  open,  and  an  old  Bursche,  seated  in 
a  chair  with  its  back  before  him,  rides  in.  He  is  in  white 
leathern  breeches  and  jack  boots,  and  wears  also  the  hat  of  a 
postilion.  He  is  commonly  clad  in  a  polonaise,  and  at  his  left 
side  hangs  the  postilion's  horn ;  in  his  right  hand  he  carries  his 
sword.  Sometimes,  as  a  variety,  he  rides  in  high  gala  dress,  in 
frock  and  huge  shirt-collar,*  and  seated  on  an  ass,  carrying 
also  his  highly-polished  and  glittering  sword  in  his  hand.  With 
solemn  assumption  of  grotesquely  well-acted  dignity,  he  thus 
leads  up  the  procession  of  assembled  Foxes,  who,  also  in  leathern 
breeches  and  jack-boots,  ride  on  chairs  in  the  same  style,  after 
the  Old  House.  The  moment  that  the  leader  of  the  train  appears, 
the  whole  assembly  breaks  out  singing : — 

*  The  established  word  for  shirt-collar  in  Germany  is  the  very  odd  one  of 
Vater-mOrder,  literally  "  Father-killers  ;"  and  they  are  said  to  have  acquired  this 
name  from  an  anecdote  manufactured  on  their  first  introduction,  in  order  to  ridi- 
cule their  extravagant  size  and  stiffness,  as  worn  by  buckish  young  men.  It  was 
said  that  so  large  and  stiffly-starched  had  a  young  student  his  collar,  that  when 
he  went  home,  in  rushing  to  embrace  his  father,  he  run  him  through  the  neck 
with  the  point  of  it,  and  killed  him  on  the  spot. 


TO  UNIVERSITY  LIFE. 


129 


THE  FOX  RIDE. 

THE  CHORE —  What  comes  there  from  the  height, 
What  comes  there  from  the  height, 
What  comes  there  from  the  leathern-a  height, 

Si  sa !  leathern-a  height, 
What  comes  there  from  the  height ! 

THE  LEADER —      There  comes  a  postilion;* 
There  comes  a  postilion; 
There  comes  a  leathern-a  postilion — 

Si,  sa!  postilion — 
There  comes  a  postilion. 

THE  CHORE —        What  brings  the  postilion  1 

What  brings  the  postilion"?  etc.  as  above. 


LEADER — 


He  bringeth  us  a  Fox ;  etc. 


THE  FOXES  SING — Good  evening,  gentlemen : 
Good  evening,  gentlemen : 
Good  evening,  noble  gentlemen : 
Good  evening,  gentlemen. 

CHORE—  What  doth  the  Herr  Papa  1 

What  doth  the  Herr  Papa  ? 
What  doth  the  leathern-a  Herr 

Si,  sa,  Herr  Papa — 
What  doth  the  Herr  Papa  ? 

THE  FOXES —         He  reads  in  Kikero  ;f 
He  reads  in  Kikero ; 
He  reads  in  leathern-a  Kikero — 

Si,  sa,  Kikero— 
He  reads  in  Kikero. 


*  This  word,  to  suit  the  air,  must  be  pronounced  postilydn,  with  a  strong  accent 
on  the  last  syllable. 

t  Cicero,  humorously  here  thus  pronounced,  because  a  party  among  the  classics 
insist  that  it  was  anciently  so  pronounced. 


130 


CEREMONIAL  INTRODUCTION 


CHORE—  What  doth  the  Frau  Mamma? 

What  doth  the  Frau  Mamma  1 
What  doth  the  leathern-a  Frau  Mamma  1— 

Si,  sa,  Frau  Mamma — 
What  doth  the  Frau  Mamma  ? 

THE  FOXES—         She  mends  the  Father's  hose ;  etc. 

CHORE—  What  doth  the  Mamsell  Sceml 

What  doth  the  Mamsell  Sffiur  1 
What  doth  the  leathern-a  Mamsell  Sceur  1 

Si,  sa,  Mamsell  Sceur  7 
What  doth  the  Mamsell  Sceur  1 


She  cooks  the  Father's  broth ; 
She  cooks  the  Father's  broth ; 
She  cooks  the  Father's  leathern-a  broth ; 

Si,  sa,  leathern-a  broth — 
She  cooks  the  Father's  broth. 


CHORE—  What  doth  the  Monsieur  Frere  ? 

What  doth  the  Monsieur  Frere  ? 
What  doth  the  leathern-a  Monsieur  Frere  1- 

Si,  sa,  Monsieur  Frere — 
What  doth  the  Monsieur  Frere  I 

THE  FOXES—         He  sits  at  home  and  oxt  ;* 
He  sits  at  home  and  oxt ; 
He  sits  at  home  and  leathern-a  oxt ; 

Si,  sa,  leathern-a  oxt ; 
He  sits  at  home  and  oxt. 

CHORE —  And  smokes  the  Fox  tobac  1  etc. 

THE  FOXES—         A  little,  gentlemen ; 
A  little,  gentlemen ; 
A  little,  noble  gentlemen — 
A  little,  gentlemen. 

THE  CHORE —        And  doth  the  Fox  drink  beer !  etc. 
THE  FOXES —        A  little,  gentlemen ;  etc.  as  above. 
*  Labours  hard,  like  an  ox. 


TO  UNIVERSITY  LIFE.  131 

While  this  is  singing,  a  pipe  is  handed  to  such  of  the  Foxes 
as  have  not  come  provided  with  this  smoke-machine,  that  every 
one  may  give  proof  of  his  ability.  Glasses  of  beer  are  also 
assiduously  handed  to  the  poor  foxes,  in  order  to  accustom  them 
to  the  noble  juice  of  the  barley.  The  foxes  in  the  end  beginning 
to  feel  squeamish  under  the  accumulated  powers  of  smoke  and 
beer,  sing  forth  in  the  same  style  the  sense  of  their  uncomfortable 
feelings ;  on  which  the  Chore,  singing,  gives  them  good  advice, 
and  presently  afterwards  they  acknowledge  in  another  stanza 
that  they  feel  themselves  better. 

After  the  singing  of  all,  or  only  some  of  the  verses  of  this 
noble  song,  according  to  the  decision  of  the  president,  he  gives 
the  sign  that  this  ceremony  is  complete,  and  the  new  Foxes  are 
perfectly  initiated. 

Then  instantly  commences  the  initiation  of  the  Brand-Foxes. 
These  have  in  the  mean  time  made  themselves  fire-proof.  They 
have  put  on  great  wigs  of  tow,  thoroughly  saturated  with  water. 
The  moment  that  they  appear  in  the  hall,  they  are  pursued  by 
the  assembled  Burschen,  who  stand  with  huge  spills  ready 
lighted  in  their  hands.  Here  and  there  fly  the  poor  Foxes  before 
their  pursuers,  who  chase  them  like  so  many  fiends  from  below 
with  the  flaming  spills,  and  without  mercy  strike  them  over  the 
head  and  face  wherever  it  be  possible.  When  the  paper  is  burnt 
out,  the  fury  of  the  pursuers  ceases  also,  and  the  Fat  Foxes  are 
advanced  to  the  rank  of  Brand-Foxes;  a  dignity  which,  in 
another  half-year,  they  will  change  for  that  of  Young  Burschen. 
Then  follow  the  ceremonies  which  they  will  at  that  time 
have  to  pass  through,  and  which  they  who  are  already  Brand- 
Foxes  now  pass  through.  It  is  this.  Each  Brand-Fox  aspiring 
to  Pawk,  or  drum,  or  fight  himself  into  the  rank  of  Young 
Bursche,  chooses  an  old  Bursche,  who  while  officiating  on  this 
occasion  is  styled  a  Pawk-Bursche,  and  sitting  down  by  his  side, 
awaits  the  proceeding  of  the  Commers.  The  president  deter- 
mines what  song  shall  be  sung;  but  he  chooses  one  with  nume- 
rous strophes.  The  following  is  the  one  generally  sung  in 
Heidelberg : — 


CEREMONIAL  INTRODUCTION 


FREE  IS  THE  BURSCH! 

Stosst  an  !*  Heidelberg  live  thou  !  Hurrah  hoch ! 
The  Philistine  to  us  most  kindly  leans ; 
He  sees  in  the  Bursche  what  freedom  means. 
Free  is  the  Bursch  ! 

Stosst  an  !  Black — red — gold,f  live  ye  !  Hurrah,  hoch ! 
He  who  guides  the  stars  where  on  high  they  glow, 
'Tis  he  who  our  banner  bears  below. 
Free  is  the  Bursch  ! 

Stosst  an  !  Fatherland  live  thou  !  Hurrah,  hoch ! 
To  our  fathers'  sacred  customs  be  true, 
Yet  think  on  our  successors  too. 
Free  is  the  Bursch! 

Stosst  an  !  Country's  prince  lives  he  !  Hurrah,  hoch  ! 
He  hath  promised  to  guard  our  ancient  right ! 
Therefore  for  him  will  we  live  and  fight. 
Free  is  the  Bursch ! 

Stosst  an !  Woman's  love  !  live  it !   Hurrah,  hoch  ! 
Who  honours  not  woman  and  woman's  mind, 
To  friend  and  freedom  is  ill  inclined. 
Free  is  the  Bursch ! 

Stosst  an !   Man's  strength !  live  it !   Hurrah,  hoch  ! 
He  who  can  neither  drink,  love,  nor  sing, 
How  scorneth  the  Bursche  so  mean  a  thing ! 
Free  is  the  Bursch ! 

*  As  we  have  no  word  or  short  phrase  in  English  to  express  this  German 
custom,  we  retain  their  own  term,  which  means  touch  your  glasses  together ; 
their  mode  of  expressing  civility,  as  in  our  drinking  to  each  other,  and  used  by 
them  on  all  occasions  of  festivity  and  rejoicing,  as  in  giving  a  health,  a  vivat,  or 
a  toast 

t  The  Chore  colours. 


TO  UNIVERSITY  LIFE.  133 

Stosst  an !  Free  speech  !  live  it !   Hurrah,  hoch  ! 
He  who  knows  the  truth  yet  dare  it  not  speak, 
Despised  for  ever  remain  the  sneak. 
Free  is  the  Bursch ! 


Stosst  an !  Bravery,  live  it !  Hurrah,  hoch ! 
He  who  counts  the  cost  ere  the  battle  hour, 
Will  basely  stoop  to  the  hand  of  power. 
Free  is  the  Bursch  ! 

Stoest  an !  Burschen-weal,  live  thou !  Hurrah,  hoch ! 
Till  the  world  is  consumed  on  the  judgment-day, 
Be  true,  ye  Burschen,  and  sing  for  aye — 
Free  is  the  Bursch ! 


After  the  singing  of  every  verse  they  stossen  an,  or  meet 
glasses,  and  whatever  quantity  of  wine  the  Pawk-Bursch  drinks, 
be  it  a  half  or  a  whole  choppin,  or  even  two  choppin,  the 
unhappy  Brand-Fox  must  drink  as  much.  Wo  to  him  that 
falls  into  the  hands  of  a  thorough  toper,  who  is  inclined  to  run 
him  hard.  After  the  conclusion  of  these  ceremonies  the  Com- 
mers  is  commonly  held,  so  that  many  a  young  Bursche  on 
returning  home  is  pretty  much  in  the  condition  of  the  Austrian 
who  had  been  at  a  Bacchanal-party,  and  was  seen,  on  its 
breaking  up,  by  one  of  his  companions  standing  in  the  middle 
of  the  square  in  which  his  house  lay,  with  his  house-door  key 
in  his  hand,  which  he  was  swinging  from  one  side  to  another 
in  an  extraordinary  manner.  "  What  are  you  doing  there  ?" 
asked  his  friend.  "  Ah,"  said  the  man,  "  the  houses  are  all 
running  round  the  square,  like  mad,  and  I'm  waiting  till  the 
right  one  comes.  It  has  been  here  several  times  already,  but 
somehow,  it  has  always  escaped  me." 


12 


CHAPTER  VII. 


THE  DUEL. 


Shall  I  for  fame  and  freedom  stand, 
For  Burschen-weal  the  sword  lift  free  ? 

Quick  blinks  the  steel  in  my  right  hand, 
A  friend  will  stand  and  second  me. 

Crambambuli. 


THE  duel  is  one  of  the  few  institutions  of  the  Middle  Ages 
which  have  come  down  to  our  times.  Club-law,  shaken  to  its 
foundation  by  the  unceasing  exertions  of  the  German  Emperors, 
must  give  way  before  a  pliant  and  cunningly  calculating  policy. 
We  see  only  in  the  duel  its  still  surviving  sparks,  and  this  we 
see  more  commonly  resorted  to  amongst  students,  than  amongst 
any  other  class,  any  other  corporate  body;  and,  moreover,  we 
find  the  German  students  making  use  of  it  to  do  themselves  jus- 
tice more  frequently  than  all  others,  and  how  can  we  wonder 
at  it  1  Where  a  great  number  of  young  men  live  a  long  time 
together,  there,  ever  and  anon,  will  certainly  disagreements 
arise.  This  we  see  to  be  the  case  every  where,  and  it  must  the 
oftener  arise  amongst  students,  who,  streaming  from  so  many 
different  places,  with  so  many  different  views  of  things,  which 
early  education  has  implanted  in  each  mind,  many  of  them, 
moreover,  placed  high  by  birth,  now  find  themselves  placed  as 
it  were  on  a  level,  that  they  may  enter  into  the  necessary  inter- 
course. "  There  is  no  love  without  strife,"  says  an  old  proverb, 


THE  DUEL.  135 

and  accordingly  this  gathering  together,  this  dividing  and  coa- 
lescing into  separate  companies,  which  takes  place  more  in  the 
German  universities  than  in  those  of  any  other  country,  must 
inevitably  lead  to  more  frequent  disputes.  Moreover,  the  free 
developement  of  all  physical  and  intellectual  powers,  in  which 
the  German  students  especially  delight,  must  more  easily  occa- 
sion differences  than  is  the  case  amongst  other  classes  of  society ; 
and  therefore  we  find  the  duel  even  more  frequent  amongst  them 
than  amongst  the  military  class.  But  if  it  enjoy  a  legal  tolera- 
tion in  the  military  class,  as  being  considered  to  a  certain  degree 
necessary,  we  must  admit  that  amongst  students,  where  it  is 
punished  by  the  laws,  it  wards  off  worse  things,  and  as  an 
unavoidable  evil  could  not  be  very  easily  or  speedily  annihilated. 
Can  we  blame  very  severely  rash  and  impetuous  youth,  which, 
in  the  feeling  of  its  strength  fancies  that  it  can  fight  out  and 
achieve  any  thing — which  has  not  yet  learnt  to  accommodate 
itself  to  the  notions  of  strangers  and  the  opinions  of  others — if  it 
betake  itself  to  other  weapons  than  well-considered  words  and 
the  discreet  pen  1  And  regarded  from  this  point  of  view,  the 
duel  appears  an  evil  small  in  comparison,  and  much  to  be  pre- 
ferred to  the  cudgel  to  which  the  Handwerksburschen,  the  jour- 
neymen artisans,  addict  themselves ;  and  from  which,  we  sup- 
pose, they  have  acquired  the  appellation  of  Knoten,  which  is 
contemptuously  given  them — as  people  who,  to  settle  their  quar- 
rels, have  recourse  to  a  knotty  stick — Knotenstock.  It  is  very 
rare  that  a  student  degrades  himself  by  the  use  of  the  cudgel, 
and  this  offence  would  be  even  more  strongly  punished  by  the 
laws,  while  it  would  be  visited  by  the  students'  own  court  of 
honour  with  the  Perruf,  or  Bann.  Nor  must  we  forget  that  in 
the  interval  between  the  offence  and  the  duel,  time  is  afforded 
for  a  more  quiet  consideration  of  the  rashly-spoken  words,  and 
a  possibility  created  for  the  withdrawal  of  them.  But  the  duel 
has  many  times  grown  in  such  a  turbulent  manner  that  it  has 
required  all  the  force  of  the  laws  to  repress  the  rage  for  combat, 
which  often  surpassed  all  conception.  As  the  tournay  of  the 
Middle  Ages  degenerated,  so  has  this  Middle  Age  practice  now 
lost  much  of  its  original  signification  ;  and  far  the  greater  number 


136  THE  DUEL. 

of  duels  serve,  not  to  terminate  disputes  between  individuals,  but 
to  afford  an  entertainment  to  the  Chore,  which  is  rendered  doubly 
attractive  by  the  charm  of  danger.  The  origin  of  almost  every 
duel  would  prove  the  truth  of  what  we  have  here  said. 

Little  matters  often  conduct  to  great  evils;  and  though  we 
are  disposed  to  consider  the  duel,  as  ordinarily  fought,  no  very 
great  evil,  yet  the  causes  out  of  which  it  springs  are  proportion- 
ably  still  less.  Honour  is  truly  a  thing  which  does  not  admit  of 
much  modification,  or  suffer  much  tampering  with ;  and  what 
will  not  a  strong  phantasy  see  in  any  thing  with  its  micro- 
scopic vision  ?  The  delicate  and  exaggerating  nature  of  these 
qualities,  reminds  one  in  fact  of  the  sportsman  who  happening 
to  put  on  a  pair  of  spectacles  of  much  greater  magnifying  power 
than  usual,  suddenly  fired  off  at  a  fly  which  passed  before  his 
eyes,  taking  it  for  a  partridge.  Many  a  one  vexes  himself  like- 
wise when  others  are  pleased.  He  is  not  in  good  humour,  and 
their  satisfaction  or  equanimity  is  an  offence  to  him.  A  country 
fellow  was  angry  with  a  traveller  for  asking  him  whether  the 
next  village  was  far  off,  when  its  first  houses  were  only  a  few 
paces  further  on.  He  knew  that ;  but  he  did  not  consider  that 
the  stranger  could  not  know  it,  and  what  was  more,  he  had 
himself  been  thinking  neither  of  that  village  nor  any  other,  but 
only  that  he  had  just  lost  a  lawsuit.  In  short,  every  one  knows 
how  it  is  accustomed  to  happen  in  such  affairs.  A  son  of  the 
Muses  is  in  a  bad  humour,  and  so  any  thing  gives  him  occasion 
to  call  thee  a  dummen  jungen ;  or  he  sends  to  thee  a  dummen 
jungen,  and  the  business  is  settled.  The  conveyance  of  such  a 
message  is  generally  consigned  to  a  student  of  some  standing, 
who  knows  how  to  conduct  himself  in  such  affairs. 

'We  above  all  things  counsel  him  who  is  no  friend  to  the  duel 
to  banish  that  little  word  "  dumm"  stupid,  entirely  out  of  his 
mouth ;  for  if  he  uses  it  to  a  student  in  the  presence  of  another, 
the  student,  were  he  his  best  friend,  must  challenge  the  user  of 
the  unlucky  term  to  fight,  unless  he  recall  the  offensive  expres- 
sion. Every  duel  drops  through,  where  the  challenger  recalls 
his  dummen  jungen,  and  this  he  can  do  with  unblemished  honour, 
if  he  has  convinced  himself  that  the  other  did  not  insult  him  pur- 


THE  DUEL. 


137 


posely.  Yet  no  student  is  willing  to  do  this  frequently,  lest  it 
might  appear  that  he  would  cut  a  swell  with  challenges,  and  yet 
has  not  really  the  courage  to  fight.  Every  duel  must  be  an- 
nounced to  the  convention  of  seniors,  which,  if  the  affair  goes  off 
in  smoke,  must  see  that  the  challenge  is  returned  as  null.  In 
earlier  times  the  insulted  party,  that  is,  the  person  who  heard  the 
above  opprobrious  name  applied  to  him,  sent  immediately  to  the 
offender  a  cartel-bearer,  to  inform  him  that  after  what  had 
occurred,  he  must  fight  him  in  this  or  that  manner. 

Come  I  athwart  a  proud  Pomadenhengst,* 

Who  with  full  sails  of  stale  and  puffed-up  pride 

Draweth  me  near — I  tread  upon  his  toe. 

Thereat  he  wonders  ; — I  tread  on  it  again ; — 

Then  grows  he  wroth  : — "  Hark  ye,"  he  cries,  "  was  that 

Foot  on  purpose  set  there1?" — "  No,  it  was  the  heel," 

"  The  heel — So  1     Nay,  that  find  I  very  strange." 

Then  add  I — "  Oh,  do  me  this  only  favour — 

Find  nothing  strange — thou  art  a  DUMMER  JUNGE  !" 

At  the  present  day  people  spare  themselves  this  trouble,  and 
also  hold  the  time  not  so  exact  that  the  duel,  as  formerly,  must 
come  off  within  three  days.  As  we  have  before  observed,  the 
weapons  with  which  all  student  duels  are  fought  belong  to  the 
Chores.  An  insulted  party  now,  therefore,  addresses  himself  to 
one  of  the  Chores — that  to  which  he  belongs,  or  to  which  he  has 
attached  himself  as  a  friend,  though  not  a  member — and  prays 
the  use  of  these  weapons.  His  request  is  granted ;  if  he  be  not 
a  member  he  pays  a  certain  sum  for  their  use ;  and  at  the  time 
which  is  agreeable  to  him,  the  Chore  sends  a  Bursche  to  the 
Chore-Kneipe,  where  it  is  expected  the  challenger  will  be  found, 
to  announce  to  him  the  appointed  day  and  hour  of  the  duel.  It 
is  not  necessary  to  name  the  place,  as  that  is  almost  always  the 
same,  at  Heidelberg  being  the  well-known  Hirsch-gasse,  or,  in 
plain  English,  Stag-lane.  The  students  term  this  "  to  fix  one." 
.If  this  hour  is  convenient  to  the  challenger,  who  has  thus  been 
fixed  or  determined,  the  Chore  the  same  evening  sends  a  Fox  to 
the  Pawk-doctor,  a  surgeon  who  regularly  attends  all  the  duels. 

*  A  dandy. 
12* 


138  THE  DUEL. 

In  what  manner  the  duel  shall  be  fought,  the  insulted  party 
need  not  yet  make  known.  Up  to  this  point  we  know  nothing 
more  than  that  it  is  to  be  fought  with  swords.  The  usual 
weapon  amongst  the  students  is  a  long  two-edged  sword,  with 
a  basket  hilt,  round  which  the  colours  of  the  Chore  are  wound. 
It  is  long  and  flexible,  in  order  that  the  blade  may  throw  itself 
over  that  of  the  opponent  when  he  parries,  as  the  duel  is  gene- 
rally fought  by  cutting  and  not  by  thrusting.  This  sword  runs 
not  to  a  point,  but  is,  as  it  were,  at  the  end  cut  square  off. 
In  some  few  universities  they  fight  in  the  Paris  fashion,  that  is, 
by  lunging  with  the  rapier,  as  in  Wiirtzburg,  Jena,  and  others. 
If  the  cause,  of  offence  or  injury  is  heavy,  they  resort  to  the 
crooked  sabre,  or  to  pistols.  In  such  cases,  the  person  who 
gives  the  offence  implying  the  challenge,  does  not  style  the 
insulted  party  a  Dummen  jungen,  but  an  Infamen,  an  infamous 
fellow. 

The  crooked  sabre  is  a  dangerous  weapon  of  great  weight, 
resembling  in  its  curve  and  length  the  dragoon  sabre,  and  occa- 
sions the  deeper  and  more  dangerous  wounds,  in  that  the  duel- 
list having  made  his  stroke  draws  it  back  with  full  strength, 
and  is  thus  in  a  condition  to  cut  through  every  thing  which 
comes  within  the  sweep  of  his  curve.  It  requires  strength  to 
use  it  well.  Student  with  student  only  can  make  use  of  the 
Schlager,  or  regular  duelling  sword.  With  those  who  are  not 
students  he  fights  with  the  crooked  sabre,  or  with  pistols ;  with 
a  military  man,  with  the  straight  sabre,  which  also  is  a  dan- 
gerous weapon. 

By  far  the  fewer  number  of  duels  spring  out  of  actual  insults 
or  injuries,  or  rather  we  should  say,  the  student  seldom  fights 
because  he  is  insulted,  but  insults  because  he  wishes  to  fight. 
Contests,  on  account  of  actual  and  genuine  insults,  are  generally 
amongst  the  Camels,  or  those  who  do  not  belong  to  any  Chore : 
seldom  amongst  the  Chore  members.  When  these,  however, 
become,  on  any  occasion,  very  hostile  to  each  other,  or  have  a 
particular  desire  to  measure  one  another's  skill,  this  is  always 
fought  in  the  Single  Round,  of  which  more  anon.  But  that 
duels  may  not  be  wanting  in  which  the  Bursche  may  set  his 


THE  DUEL.  139 

bravery  in  its  true  light,  a  fine  opportunity  is  afforded  by  the 
so-called  Allgemeinen,  or  general  Kneips,  which  are  held  every 
Friday.  We  shall  farther  on,  come  to  these  again. 

When  the  Chores  are  here  assembled,  each  kneiping  at  its 
own  table,  it  requires  but  a  trifling  spark  to  put  two  Chores, 
who  for  some  time  have  already  been  in  a  state  of  electrical 
excitement,  into  thorough  fire  and  flame.  A  Bursche  comes 
over  from  one  table  to  another,  listens  awhile  quietly  to  what  is 
here  saying,  but  soon  finds  an  opportunity  to  quiz  or  ridicule 
this  or  that ;  to  make  himself  merry  over  the  weapons  of  the 
Chore,  or  its  last  Commers.  Like  is  compared  with  like :  the 
conversation  grows  continually  warmer ;  more  and  more  from 
the  other  table  keep  coming  over,  and  mix  themselves  in  the 
strife.  This  becomes  momentarily  hotter;  finally,  the  senior 
himself  comes  over,  and  challenges  the  other  senior  to  a  Cliore- 
hatze. .  By  this  is  understood  a  regular  duel  between  the  whole 
of  the  two  Chores,  man  with  man.  In  a  similar  manner  a 
similar  great  contest  springs  out  of  the  quarrel  which  two 
individuals  seek  with  each  other  out  of  special  malice.  When 
these  give  the  challenge  at  a  general  Kneip,  then  follows  a 
general  challenging,  the  friends  of  both  the  parties  following 
the  example. 

And  challenges  by  scores  are  seen, 
Because  the  wit  is  very  keen. 

The  following  persons  are  necessary  to  a  duel,  besides  the 
two  duellists ;  two  seconds,  two  witnesses,  an  umpire,  and  the 
surgeon.  The  room  in  which  the  duels  are  fought  at  Heidel- 
berg, is  the  well-known  room  of  an  inn  on  the  side  of  the 
Neckar  opposite  to  the  city,  finely  located  in  the  valley  of  the 
Hirsch-gasse.  Thither  see  we  the  Sons  of  the  Muses  often 
betaking  themselves  in  troops,  to  witness  a  contest  between  two 
of  their  most  famous  swordsmen.  When  a  duel  is  determined, 
the  room,  or  hall,  as  it  is  termed,  must  be  secured  for  the  ap- 
pointed day.  The  room  is  regularly  hired  for  these  purposes 
by  the  Convention  of  the  Chores,  and  its  rent  is  defrayed  out  of 


140  THE  DUEL. 

the  Chore-chest,  as  before  observed,  where  also  it  was  remarked 
that  the  use  of  it  and  the  weapons  is  hired  for  particular  occa- 
sions by  the  Camels.  The  Chore  to  which  the  challenger 
belongs,  or  with  which  he  has  associated  himself,  secures  the 
hall  by  marking  the  Chore  sign  on  the  floor  with  chalk.  By 
this  it  acquires  the  right  to  occupy  it  for  two  duels,  and  must 
then,  if  wanted,  surrender  it  to  another  Chore. 

"  Solemnly,"  says  Hauff,  in  the  Memoirs  of  Satan,  speaking 
of  a  duel,  "  was  each  individual  conducted  into  a  chamber,  his 
coat  taken  off,  and  the  Paukwicks,  that  is,  the  armour  in  which 
the  duel  is  to  be  fought,  put  on."  Each  duellist  is,  in  fact,  con- 
ducted into  a  chamber  by  his  witness  and  second,  and  clothed 
in  the  duel  costume.  Some  trifling  changes  take  place  in  this 
from  time  to  time,  but  it  consists,  substantially,  of  the  following 
pieces.  A  lesser  and  a  greater  cap,  according  to  circumstances 
hereafter  noticed,  and  which  can  be  made  tighter  or  looser, 
but  which  is  generally  worn  loose,  so  that  the  blows  may  take 
less  effect.  A  tall  cravat,  which  protects  the  throat,  and  com- 
monly reaches  up  to  the  nose,  but  this  is  put  on  in  the  hall  imme- 
diately before  the  fight  commences.  The  binding  of  the  arm 
is  particularly  important,  that  it  may  afford  it  the  greatest 
possible  protection,  at  the  same  time  that  it  does  not  impede  the 
action  of  the  wrist  and  elbow.  For  this  purpose  is  used  a  fine 
leather  glove,  bound  round  and  secured  to  the  wrist  with  a 
silken  riband.  This  binding  of  the  glove  must  be  very  carefully 
performed,  so  as  to  defend  the  sinews  and  arteries  which 
abound  here,  as  much  as  possible  from  injury.  The  hand  is 
protected  by  the  basket-hilt  of  the  sword.  The  duellist  takes 
the  end  of  the  riband  which  secures  the  glove  in  his  hand  until 
a  similar  one  has  been  passed  round  the  elbow.  The  slulp,  a 
thick  and  well-quilted  cover  for  the  arm,  made  of  silk,  is  then 
drawn  on,  fitted  down  upon  the  glove,  and  being  fastened  there 
by  the  riband  which  also  secures  the  glove,  and  at  the  upper 
part  of  the  arm  by  other  ribands.  Another  bandage,  called  the 
axillary  knot,  has  frequently  also  been  brought  under  the 
shoulder  to  defend  the  axillary  arteries  from  injury.  The  last 


THE  DUEL.  141 

piece  of  the  duel-costume  consists  of  the  paukhosen,  or  duel- 
trousers.  It  is  made  of  leather  of  uncommon  thickness,  and 
well  stuffed,  and  comes  up  so  as  to  form  a  sort  of  cuirass, 
though  without  iron,  such  as  the  soldiers  of  Columbus  used 
to  wear.  High  as  it  reaches,  it  yet  leaves  a  good  part  of 
the  breast  uncovered.  It  is  laced  together  behind  by  means  of 
leathern  thongs.  A  thicker  glove  is  fastened  to  the  paukhosen 
behind  for  the  left  hand,  or  should  the  duellist  happen  to  be  left- 
handed,  for  the  right,  to  keep  it  out  of  the  way  during  the  fight. 
Before  the  combatant  was  thus  attired,  he  had  not  only  his 
coat,  waistcoat,  neckcloth  and  braces  taken  off,  but  his  shirt 
sleeve  also  slit  up  from  the  wrist  to  the  shoulder,  so  as  to  give 
full  freedom  to  the  action  of  the  arm,  on  which  account  a  duel- 
shirt  is  frequently  kept  for  the  purpose,  and  put  on  before  going 
to  the  place  of  contest. 

The*whole  of  this  duel-suit  is  calculated  for  a  man  of  ordi- 
nary size,  and  therefore  little  fellows  often  cut  a  very  laughable 
figure  in  it.  They  are  more  protected  in  it  than  larger  persons, 
but  at  the  same  time  are  more  encumbered.  The  second 
clothes  himself  in  similar  duel-trousers,  and  puts  on  a  cap  with 
a  large  front,  or  a  hat,  and  the  large  leather  stulp-glove  covers 
his  arm.  The  witness  requires  only  a  leathern  glove  on  one 
hand,  to  enable  him,  if  the  sword  of  the  combatant  gets  bent 
during  the  fight,  to  straighten  it  out  again  for  him. 

When  the  two  duellists  are  equipped,  they  are  conducted  into 
the  hall,  and  whilst  the  remaining  particulars  are  adjusted,  they 
walk  up  and  down,  each  supporting  the  arm  which  has  to  wield 
the  sword  on  his  witness.  The  seconds  now  measure  out  the 
distance,  and  determine  it  by  two  lines  of  chalk.  Within  these 
two  lines  the  combatants  must  fight,  and  behind  which  they  are 
not  allowed  to  retreat.  If  either  of  them  does  this  three  times, 
he  is  dismissed  from  the  contest  with  shame  and  insult.  The 
second  of  the  person  challenged  has  the  right  to  choose  the 
umpire,  the  second  of  the  challenger  commands.  Now  first  has 
the  challenger  to  declare  in  what  manner  he  will  fight ;  but  till 
we  have  said  a  few  explanatory  words,  must  the  antagonists 
restrain  their  impetuosity. 


142  THE  DUEL. 

The  different  sorts  of  the  duel  progress,  from  the  mildest  to 
the  most  severe,  in  this  order : 

1.  Twelve  rounds  with  the  great  cap. 
(a)  With  a  conclusive  wound. 

(6)  Without  a  conclusive  wound. 

2.  Twelve  rounds  with  the  small  cap. 
(a)  With,  etc.        (6)  Without,  etc. 

3.  Twenty-four  rounds  with  the  great  cap. 
(a)  With,  etc.     (6)  Without,  etc. 

4.  Twenty-four  rounds  with  the  small  cap. 
(a)  With,  etc.     (6)  Without,  etc. 

5.  One  round  with  (a)  (6) 

6.  A  round  without  cravat  or  bandage. 

Before  we  proceed  to  the  explanation  of  these  terms,  we  may 
remark,  that  the  same  rules  apply  to  the  crooked  sabre,  but  if  it 
be  used,  the  combatants  generally  fight  what  is  called  the  single 
round,  and  that  duels  with  pistols  are  conducted  in  the  different 
modes  in  which  other  people  fight  those  duels.  The  students 
commonly  fire  at  twenty  paces  distance;  the  exchange  of  shots 
takes  place  at  the  word  of  the  commanding  second,  and  in  such 
a  manner  that  the  antagonists  can  only  at  the  moment  that  the 
command  reaches  the  final  word  "  three !"  catch  sight  of  each 
other.  One  exchange  of  shots  is  generally  held  satisfactory. 

By  a  round  is  understood  the  duration  of  a  contest  till  one 
has  planted  an  unparried  blow  on  his  antagonist ;  it  may  be  on 
his  person  or  only  on  his  defensive  paraphernalia :  of  such 
rounds  twelve  at  least  are  made.  The  small  cap  indicates  the 
ordinary  cap  which  the  student  wears ;  and  the  large  one,  a  cap 
with  a  very  large  front  or  shield.  The  theological  students  fight 
in  the  large  cap,  since  a  scar  in  the  face  would  amount  to  a 
termination  of  their  professional  career,  of  which  Hauflf  gives 
an  example,  in  the  Memoirs  of  Satan,  to  which  the  reader  may 
refer  if  his  curiosity  so  far  prompts  him. 

The  most  customary  duel  is  that  with  twenty-four  rounds  and 


THE  DUEL.  143 

the  small  cap.  Is  it  fought  in  the  ordinary  manner,  that  is, 
twenty-four  rounds  with  a  conclusive  wound  ?  then  the  duel  is 
ended  when  a  blow  falls  which  is  considered  a  conclusive  one, 
namely,  of  two  inches  length,  and  deep — according  to  student 
phrase — to  cut  through  the  two  skins.  The  duel  of  twenty-four 
rounds  without  conclusive  wound  proceeds  thus.  If  a  conside- 
rable hit  is  made,  the  doctor  must  decide  whether  the  duel  can 
proceed  or  not;  in  the  latter  case,  the  fight  is  continued,  how- 
ever, as  soon  as  the  wounded  party  is  sufficiently  restored, 
which  in  the  twenty-four  rounds  with  a  conclusive  stroke  as  ob- 
served, cannot  happen.  In  either  kind  of  duel,  however,  it  must 
terminate  with  the  twenty-four  rounds,  though  neither  has  lost 
blood.  In  this  case,  both  the  antagonists  remain  unconquered, 
and  give  their  hands  in  reconciliation.  When  a  wound  is  given, 
which  in  its  own  nature  or  by  the  rules  of  the  duel  proves  de- 
cisive, ihe  second  of  the  wounded  party  puts  an  end  to  the  con- 
test with  the  words  "  Remove  him  !"  Distinguished  swordsmen 
generally  fight  the  single  round.  In  this  case  they  fight  for  a 
quarter  of  an  hour.  The  umpire  stands  with  his  watch  in  his 
hand,  marks  the  pauses  which  are  made  for  rest  when  the  com- 
batants become  weary,  and  counts  them  off  from  the  actual 
time  of  fighting.  So  long  a  time  as  has  been  consumed  in 
resting,  must  the  duel  extend  beyond  the  quarter.  The  sixth 
and  last  mode  consists  in  fighting  without  coat,  waistcoat,  and 
cravat,  and  without  the  usual  defensive  costume.  This,  of 
course,  is  the  very  worst  species  of  all  those  which  have  been 
enumerated. 

When  all  is  ready  for  the  duel,  the  two  combatants  confront 
each  other.  The  second  stands  at  the  left  side  of  each,  holding 
in  his  hand  the  so-called  Secondir-Priigel,  or  second's  cudgel,  a 
weapon  consisting  of  a  strong  rapier  fixed  into  a  basket-handle. 
The  witness  stands  at  the  right  side.  His  business  is  to  put  in 
order  again  the  duel  costume  of  the  combatant  when  it  becomes 
deranged,  and  to  support  his  arm  when  it  is  become  weary. 
The  umpire  stands  at  some  little  distance,  between  the  two  com- 
batants, and  before  him  is  a  chair,  on  which  he  marks  the  end 


144  THE  DUEL. 

of  each  round  with  a  chalk  line,  forming  the  one  side  of  a 

square,  so  that  at  the  end  of  twelve  rounds  his  r— i 

marks  have  completed  this  figure    ....  [— ^— ' 


At  the  end  of  the  twenty-four,  this    ....         p-t^-j    \_j- , 


i — i 


Hb 

The  swords  have  been  ground  sharp  in  preparation,  on  the 
grindstone  in  the  court  below.  The  spectators  have  assembled 
themselves.  These  can  only  be  students;  and  even  these,  if 
the  combatants  require  it,  evacuate  the  hall.  In  that  case  the 
cry  is  made  "  All  must  quit  the  place." 

"  We  planted  ourselves  in  the  ancient  attitude  of  combat ;  the 
swords  were  crossed ;  the  seconds  cried  '  loose !'  and  the  swords 
whirred  in  the  air." — Haujfs  Memoirs  of  Satan. 

The  commanding  second  cries — "  Upon  the  measure."  Both 
combatants  step  forward  upon  the  measure ;  the  seconds  station 
themselves  at  their  posts ;  the  witnesses  step  back.  "  Bind  the 
sword!"  cry  the  seconds;  the  combatants  put  themselves  in 
attitude,  crossing  their  weapons.  The  seconds  become  more 
earnestly  observant.  "  Loose  !"  they  cry,  and  the  swords  flash 
in  the  air.  On  the  style  of  fighting  we  shall  say  what  need  be 
said,  below,  under  the  head  of  the  Fencing-school.  We  often 
see  two  practised  swordsmen  long  circling  round  within  the 
measure,  watching  keenly  every  movement  of  each  other's  eye, 
every  turn  of  each  other's  hand,  while  the  seconds  follow  all 
their  movements  with  the  same  short  and  quick  steps.  Sud- 
denly an  unguarded  part  is  espied,  and  stroke  upon  stroke  falls 
with  lightning  speed.  Quickly  a  blow  is  planted ;  the  seconds 
dart  between,  and  with  the  word  "  Halt,"  strikes  the  swords 
aside.  The  moment  this  word  is  given,  the  combatant  must 
cease  to  strike :  if  he  do  not  this,  he  has  made  an  after-stroke, 
and  where  this  is  done  three  times,  the  offender  must  quit  the 
measure  with  shame  and  contempt. 

The  second  must  be  an  expert  swordsman,  or  he  would  not 
only  run  great  danger  himself,  but  be  unable  to  give  to  his  com- 
batant the  necessary  protection.  This  office,  as  already  stated, 


THE  DUEL.  145 

falls  to  the  second  Chargirter.  He  must  exert  all  his  skill  to 
protect  his  combatant  as  much  as  possible,  without  holding  his 
second-cudgel  so  as  to  prevent  the  blows  of  the  antagonist 
reaching  him.  He  must  take  heed  that  the  opponent  does  not 
present  his  sword  so  horizontally  that  his  combatant  in  rushing 
forward  shall  run  upon  its  point.  We  have  stated  that  it  is  a 
disgrace  to  the  duellist  if,  before  the  round  is  ended,  he  goes 
backwards  off  the  measure.  This  the  student  calls  to  "  nip," 
or  to  "  nip  out,"  and  says  "  he  is  nipped."  A  laughable  cir- 
cumstance of  this  kind  once  took  place  in  Gottingen. 

A  little  Jew  had  a  quarrrel  with  a  renowned  Schlager,  or 
duellist,  of  great  stature,  who  had  maltreated  the  little  Hebrew. 
When  they  stood  upon  the  measure,  the  little  fellow  who  had 
never  before  entered  this  arena,  awaited  with  wrathful  impa- 
tience the  word  "loose,"  and  made  a  spring  in  the  moment, 
whereby  he  gave  the  opponent  a  tremendous  quarte  in  the  face, 
crying,  "  There,  thou'st  got  something !"  The  tall  fellow,  who 
expected  nothing  so  sudden,  was  horribly  enraged  at  this  inroad 
upon  the  honour  of  his  swordsmanship,  and  so  much  the  more 
as  every  one  laughed  heartily  at  the  droll  occurrence.  Spite  of 
all  outcries  and  commands  to  "  halt,"  the  student  pursued  the 
Jew  with  terrible  strokes,  so  that  he,  unable  to  maintain  his 
ground,  stepped  continually  backwards  till  he  at  length  actually 
took  refuge  behind  the  stove.  The  seconds  were  seized  with 
such  a  paroxysm  of  laughter  at  this  scene,  that  they  were  unable 
sooner  to  run  to  the  aid  of  the  little  Jew,  and  then  first  placed 
themselves  as  a  wall  between  the  stove  and  the  enraged  swords- 
man. 

When  a  round  is  ended,  the  seconds  and  the  witnesses,  who 
come  to  their  aid,  often  contend  the  point,  whether  an  after-blow 
was  made  or  not,  whether  one  or  other  of  the  seconds  fore- 
warded,  that  is,  exceeded  his  duty  in  protecting  his  protege  to 
the  prejudice  of  the  opponent  or  not ;  which  last  act,  if  often 
repeated,  entitles  the  other  second  to  demand  that  he  be  dis- 
missed from  his  post.  But  most  frequently  of  all,  the  dispute  is, 
whether  the  blow  took  or  not.  All  these  points  of  dispute  have 
to  be  referred  to  the  umpire,  against  whose  decision  there  is  no 

13 


146  THE  DUEL. 

appeal.  When  the  single  round  is  fought,  the  seconds  do  not 
stand  at  the  left  side,  but  so  that  they  make  a  cross  with  the 
duellers,  as  here  that  frequent  springing  in  between  them  is  not 
necessary.  So  goes  the  duel  forward  till  terminated  in  one  of 
the  aforesaid  ways.  In  the  mean  time  the  doctor  has,  from  the 
very  commencement  of  the  fight,  had  his  bandages  in  readiness, 
his  needles  threaded,  and  water  set  at  hand,  prepared  at  a  mo- 
ment with  a  skilful  hand  to  afford  assistance  to  the  wounded. 

The  duel  with  swords  is,  as  may  be  inferred  from  what  we 
have  described,  not  very  dangerous,  and  thus  it  proves  itself, 
since  from  the  great  number  of  duels  which  annually  occur,  so 
few  serious  consequences  follow.  There  are  now  students,  who, 
during  their  career,  have  fought  from  thirty  to  forty,  and  even 
sixty  times,  and  yet  have  come  out  of  them  all  with  a  few  slight 
wounds  in  the  face.  Yet  tragical  consequences  are  by  no 
means  wanting.  Noses  and  eyes  are  sometimes  lost,  and  even 
fatal  terminations  are  now  and  then  put  to  them.*  The  wounded 
are  nursed  with  great  care  by  their  companions;  and  those 
who  distinguish  themselves  with  their  weapons,  speedily  mount 
to  the  head  of  their  Chores.  It  is  said  that  two  brothers  were 
such  strong  and  perfect  swordsmen,  that  they  disabled  a  whole 
Chore,  with  whom  they  came  into  contention  for  further  exer- 
cise of  their  weapons  for  the  whole  half-year.  The  duels  with 
the  crooked  sabre,  are  the  most  frequently  attended  by  unhappy 
results. 

The  duel  is  distinctly  prohibited  by  the  laws.  The  enactments 
of  the  academical  senate  concerning  it  are  as  follows : — 

1.  If  any  one  is  slain  in  a  duel,  or  is  deadly  wounded  therein, 
or  so  wounded  that  he  finds  himself  in  danger  of  his  life ;  or 
that  a  lasting  disadvantage,  through  mutilation  or  internal  in- 
jury, is  occasioned  him ;  or  if  the  duel  has  been  with  pistols, 
with  the  fleuret,  or  with  the  crooked  sabre;  and  even  when  the 
duel  with  pistols,  with  fleuret,  or  with  the  crooked  sabre,  has 
not  been  completed,  but  only  intended,  the  affair  can  no  longer 

*  While  translating  this  passage,  the  tidings  have  come  across  the  river,  that  a 
student  is  shot  dead  in  the  wood  opposite  to  my  windows  behind  the  Hirsch-gasse, 
in  a  duel  with  pistols. — TV. 


THE  DUEL.  147 

be  regarded  as  a  mere  violation  of  discipline,  but  to  be  penally 
treated,  a  trial  constituted  against  the  actors,  and  all  the  aiders 
and  abettors,  before  the  university  magistrate,  and  all  the  mi- 
nutes and  evidence  to  be  handed  over  for  the  decision  of  the 
civil  courts  of  justice. 

2.  Shall  the  duel  with  sword  or  crooked  sabre  have  been  fol- 
lowed by  none  of  the  aforestated  consequences,  without  making 
any  further  distinction  between  the  relative  position  of  chal- 
lenger and  challenged,  both  parties  shall,  under  ordinary  cir- 
cumstances, suffer  a  punishment  of  from  four  weeks  incarcera- 
tion to  the  enforcement  of  the  consilium  abeundi.     On  account 
of  more  serious  circumstances,  in  especial,  on  account  of  a 
wilful  seeking  after  contention,  of  gross  insult,  of  rejection  to 
offers  of  reconciliation,  neglect  of  the  summons  of  a  surgeon, 
or  of  fighting  the  duel  under  unusually  dangerous  regulations, 
shall,  according  to  the  circumstances  of  the  case,  punishment  of 
a  higher  kind  be  inflicted  on  one  or  both  parties,  as  may  appear 
right,  even  to  the  extent  of  the  sharp  relegation. 

In  milder  circumstances,  and  towards  that  party  who  shall 
have  made  sufficient  offers  of  reconciliation,  or  who  has  been 
injured  or  insulted  in  a  gross  degree,  the  lighter  penalty  of 
imprisonment  from  eight  days  to  four  weeks  may  be  inflicted. 

A  duel  is  held  to  be  perpetrated  from  the  moment  of  its 
commencement. 

3.  Seconds  and  so-called  umpires  may  pass  without  punish- 
ment, or  according  to  circumstances,  may  be  imprisoned  not 
exceeding  eight  days:   shall   the  duel,   however,   have   been 
effectuated  under  unusually  dangerous  circumstances,  they  shall 
be  punished  with  greater  severity,  even  to  the  consilium  abeundi. 
The  witnesses,  spectators,  cartel-bearers,  or  those   in  whose 
house  the  duel  has  been  allowed  to  take  place,  or  who  have 
contributed   towards  it  by  other  means,  shall  be  imprisoned 
from  eight  to  fourteen  days. 

4.  Those  who  have  been  guilty  of  exciting  others  to  fight  a 
duel,  shall  suffer  the  consilium  abeundi,  or  in  some  aggravated 
cases  the  simple  or  sharper  relegation. 

5.  He  who  is  aware  of  an  appointed  duel,  shall  make  it 


148  THE  DUEL. 

immediately  known  to  the  university  magistrate  whereupon 
those  concerned  in  it  will  be,  without  delay,  confined  to  their 
houses,  or,  if  circumstances  require  it,  be  arrested. 

6.  After    inquiry,   reconcilement   of   the    parties    is    to   be 
attempted;  but  if  this  cannot  be  effected,  both  parties  must  sign 
a  declaration,  with  which  they  must  be  satisfied.     But  in  both 
cases  must  both  parties  give  their  word  of  honour  that  they 
will  fight  no  more  during  the  remainder  of  the  term  of  their 
academical  rights  of  citizenship,  and  sign  the  protocol  for  that 
purpose  presented  by  the  magistrate  of  the  university.  Whoever 
refuses  to  do  this  shall  immediately  receive  the  consilium  abeundi ; 
and  whoever  afterwards  breaks  his  word  of  honour  and  again 
fights,  shall  be  visited  with  the  sharper  relegation,  also  he  who 
fights  with  him. 

7.  Those  students  of  medicine  or  surgery,  who  shall,  at  any 
time,  undertake  the  bandaging  for  a  duel,  shall,  after  the  first 
bandaging  and  performing  of  what  was  immediately  necessary 
to  the  wounded,  instantly  give  information  thereof  to  an  autho- 
rized surgeon ;  and  if  they  fail  to  do  this,  they  shall,  according 
to  the  degree  of  danger  of  the  wounded,  suffer  a  proportionate 
imprisonment;  and  if  the  case  warrant  it,  the  consilium  abeundi, 
or  relegation. 

8.  The  punishment  for  duels  between  students  and  persons 
of  another  class,  shall  be  regulated  by  the  principles  here  laid 
down,  unless  attended  with  contingencies  of  particular  aggra- 
vation. 

9.  The  beadles  who  have  detected  duels  in  the  course  of  the 
year,  and  he  of  them  who  through  the  discovery  of  appointed 
duels  shall  have  contributed  the  most  to  the  prevention  of  the 
fighting  of  duels,  shall  each,  according  to  the  evidences  and 
degrees  of  zeal,  receive  a  reward  of  forty,  sixty,  or  eighty 
gulden,*  and  the  academical  senate,  through  the  curator,  shall 
determine  the  relative  sum. 

10.  The  weapons  and  other  things  necessary  to  a  duel,  which 
shall  be  found  upon  the  place  chosen  or  appointed  for  a  duel, 

*  In  English  money,  from  about  three  to  seven  pounds. 


THE  DUEL.  149 

shall  be  seized,  made  useless,  and  so  converted,  as  much  as 
may  be,  to  the  benefit  of  the  university  treasury. 


The  beadles  strive  with  all  diligence  to  entitle  themselves  to 
the  proffered  reward ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  the  students  exert 
all  their  ingenuity  to  defeat  the  vigilance  of  these  Arguses.  In 
their  behalf  numerous  persons  are  employed,  who,  through 
signs,  give  intelligence  of  the  approach  of  the  beadles,  or,  as 
they  are  termed  by  the  students,  Poodles.  Amongst  these,  at 
Heidelberg,  stands  prominently  forth  the  Red  Fisherman,  dis- 
tinguished for  his  Herculean  strength,  and  an  inventive  spirit 
not  a  whit  inferior  to  that  of  Ulysses.  That  brown  sunburnt 
countenance,  whose  features  announce  a  rude  bravery — that 
red  hair — that  solid  build  of  limb — that  mighty  chest  spread 
like  the  breastwork  of  a  battery,  and  which  the  wide  out-lying 
shirt  is  too  proud  to  conceal,  and  the  fantastic  cap — the  man  is 
not  a  moment  to  be  mistaken.  He  belongs  to  those  creatures 
of  the  students  which  are  to  be  found  in  every  university  city, 
and  who,  living  by  the  students,  are  to  them  indispensable.  So 
the  Red  Fisherman  renders  the  most  important  services,  both 
connected  with  the  duels  and  otherwise.  At  night  when  the 
Lumpen-bell*  sounds,  he  makes  the  round  of  the  Kneips,  and  if 
he  finds  any  of  the  sons  of  the  Muses  whose  legs  Bacchus  has 
lamed,  he  throws  one  over  each  shoulder,  like  two  sacks,  and 
hastens  with  them  to  their  lodgings.  He  is  present  at  all  Com- 
merses  and  Comitates :  like  a  true  hound  he  partakes  of  all  the 
enjoyments  of  his  lords,  and  grimly  defends  them  in  their  diffi- 
culties ;  as  in  the  villages,  where  it  often  happens  at  the  holding 
of  a  Commers  there,  that  through  their  exuberant  pranks  they 
get  into  skirmishes  with  the  peasants,  who  will  assail  them  in 
troops  with  tremendous  cudgels,  and  are,  when  their  blood  is 
up,  on  such  occasions,  merciless  antagonists,  beating,  treading 

*  The  bell  which  is  rung  at  a  quarter  to  eleven  at  night,  at  the  hearing  of 
which  all  persons  are  to  evacuate  public-houses,  and  betake  themselves  home. 

13* 


150  THE  DUEL. 

on,  and  even  stamping  on  the  faces  of  those  whom  they  have 
knocked  down.  The  Red  Fisherman,  in  such  emergencies,  is 
another  Ajax,  and  wresting  their  weapons  from  them,  lays 
prostrate  hosts  of  Bauers  before  him  with  their  own  cudgels. 
On  all  occasions  he  patiently  bears  the  wanton  whims  and 
insolent  humours  of  his  own  lords  in  their  barley-cornish  hours. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  police  treat  him  in  trials  and  inquiries 
which  come  before  the  magistrates  with  all  possible  lenity  and 
forbearance,  as  by  his  courage  and  skill  in  swimming  he  has 
already  saved  the  lives  of  six  or  eight  persons. 

When  a  duel  is  about  to  take  place,  the  Red  Fisherman  is 
generally  posted  on  the  Neckar-bridge,  to  give  thence  the  first 
alarm  signal.  The  moment  that  he  perceives  the  beadles  has- 
tening that  way,  he  gives  the  sign  by  a  handkerchief,  or  in  some 
other  way,  to  a  servant-girl,  who  is  stationed  for  that  purpose 
below  the  Hirsch-gasse,  and  on  receiving  it,  hastens  in  and 
gives  the  alarm.  The  combatants  are  hastily  stripped  of  their 
duel  dress,  their  own  garments  thrown  on,  the  fighting  appa- 
ratus thrown  into  some  place  of  concealment,  and  all  fly  out  by 
windows  and  doors,  and  plunge  into  the  woods,  where  they 
return  by  a  circuitous  route  to  the  city.  If  the  surprise  is  too 
sudden  to  allow  the  Pawkant,  or  duellist,  to  divest  himself  of 
his  inconvenient  costume  he  runs,  in  full  battle-habit,  to  conceal 
himself  as  he  is,  in  the  garret  of  the  house,  or  in  a  neighbouring 
corn-field.  The  little  garden-house  which  stands  just  above, 
called  by  them  Tusculum,  has  afforded  many  a  one  shelter; 
indeed,  at  one  time,  two  students  regularly  hired  it  and  lived  in 
it,  so  that  when  the  surprised  combatants  ran  in  thither,  they 
became  only  visitors,  stepped  in  to  see  their  friends.  The 
police,  however,  soon  prohibited  their  abode  there. 

The  beadle  has  little  chance  of  approach  by  the  open  high- 
way ;  but  he  endeavours  to  cross  the  Neckar  by  a  boat,  at  a 
distant  spot,  and  so  by  hidden  footways  over  the  hills,  to  come 
slily  upon  their  rendezvous ;  or  he  lounges  as  a  Bauer  or  a 
sportsman  through  the  neighbouring  vineyards ;  or  he  comes 
riding  up  as  a  gen-d'anne. 


THE  DUEL. 

But  come  the  beadle  however  he  will, 

The  wit  of  the  student's  too  much  for  him  still. 

He  may  think  himself  certain  to  pounce  on  his  game, 

But  he's  still  more  certain  to  fail  in  his  aim. 


One  of  the  most  common  punishments  of  the  duel  is  confine- 
ment in  the  university  prison ;  and  a  few  words  on  the  permitted 
fencing  usages  may  here  precede  a  short  account  of  that.  There 
is  one  regular  fencing-master  appointed  in  the  university,  who 
gives  his  instructions  at  his  own  house.  Every  Chore  has  here 
its  place  of  practice ;  that  is,  a  large  room  in  the  house  of  the 
fencing-master  is  hired  by  each  Chore  at  a  fixed  hour  of  the 
day,  where  they  meet  together  and  practise  fencing,  the  fencing- 
master  often  being  present.  Others  who  wish  to  accomplish 
themselves  in  the  art  of  fence,  join  themselves  to  these  Chore 
members,  but  it  is  forbidden  to  lunge,  lest  under  the  pretence 
of  fencing  the  duel  may  be  concealed.  Of  the  German  mode 
of  fencing  there  is  truly  as  little  to  say  as  if  we  should  describe 
to  any  one  how  he  should  waltz.  The  customary  weapon,  and 
whoever  has  wielded  it  knows  well  the  meaning  of  high  and 
low,  guard,  quart,  terz,  high  and  low  quart,  prim,  second,  and 
so  forth.  The  German  rapier  fight  is  not  so  ornamental  as  the 
French  lunging  with  the  fleureL  It  requires  greater  strength, 
and  the  movements  are  only  in  the  wrist ;  for  the  rest,  it  may 
be  recommended  to  any  one  as  a  strengthening  exercise.  The 
rapier  is  similar  to  the  Schlager,  but,  of  course,  blunt ;  a  thick 
leather  stulp  covers  the  arm,  and  a  mask  the  face.  The  German 
student,  it  is  well  known,  arrives  at  a  great  dexterity  in  this 
practice,  as  he  distinguishes  himself  in  all  bodily  exercises  of 
strength  and  dexterity,  and  as  tfie  Burschenschaft  members  did 
in  the  more  useful  gymnastic  schools,  where  they  often  per- 
formed astonishing  exploits.  The  gymnastic  schools,  as  the 
rendezvous  of  the  Burschenschaft,  are  unhappily  cried  down, 
and  are  thereby  fallen  completely  into  neglect. 

It  is  an  inspiriting  sight  to  see  able  swordsmen  contending 
with  powerful  strokes  in  the  fencing-school;  and  sometimes  all 
seem  mad  together,  when  a  couple  of  the  great  dogs  of  the 


152  THE  DUEL. 

students  having  found  their  way  in,  each  rushes  to  assist  his 
master  with  yells  and  merciless  bites.  All  in  the  room  retreat 
to  tables  and  chairs,  and  the  wrath  of  the  hounds  is  then  turned 
against  each  other.  They  take  the  place  of  strife  instead  of 
their  masters,  who,  in  their  individual  ornature,  in  all  corners  of 
the  room  stand  guarding  themselves  with  their  swords. 

The  Career  is  the  prison  of  the  students,  and  consists  of  three 
or  four  rooms  in  the  house  of  the  Chief  Beadle,  immediately 
under  the  roof.  It  is  secured  with  iron  grating,  and  contains 
as  furniture  only  a  bed,  a  small  table,  and  a  wooden  chair. 
These  small  chambers  have  received  different  names  from  the 
students,  as  the  Solitude,  Bellevue,  Recreation,  and  the  Hole. 
The  last  is  the  dark  place  into  which  the  nightly  disturbers  are 
thrust,  that  they  may  here,  undisturbed  and  undisturbing  exer- 
cise their  fancies  till  morning.  They  are  under  the  care  of  a 
beadle,  who  supplies  the  necessities  of  the  prisoner.  The  captive 
may  not  for  the  first  few  days  quit  his  durance  on  any  account. 
Afterwards  he  may  attend  his  college  lectures,  or  he  goes  about 
during  the  time  that  he  ought  to  attend  them,  taking  care  to 
avoid  meeting  the  officers  of  police.  He  must  also  return  to 
the  prison  at  night.  During  the  days  that  he  is  in  close  confine- 
ment, he  can  entertain  himself  with  reading ;  he  plays  or  drinks, 
smokes  and  chats  with  his  acquaintance,  who  are  allowed  to 
see  him  by  an  order  from  the  Amtmann.  His  food  he  procures 
from  one  of  the  regular  eating-houses,  by  means  of  his  boot- 
fox.  If  all  visits  to  him  are  prohibited,  in  accordance  with  the 
severity  of  his  sentence,  and  if  he  be  not  inclined  to  study,  he 
lies  in  bed  and  consoles  himself  with  his  pipe  the  greater  part 
of  the  day,  which  he  finds  far  more  agreeable  than  sitting  in 
that  hard  and  uncomfortable  chair.  Thus  we  see,  that  this 
punishment  is  not  excessively  cruel,  though  it  has  the  property 
of  promoting  considerably  the  transparency  of  the  purse ;  since 
this  agreeable  lodging  must  be  paid  for,  and  the  services  of  the 
beadle  during  the  day  are  nothing  near  so  responsive  to  love  as 
to  money,  and  for  which,  at  all  events,  he  must  pay  a  specified 
sum.  In  some  universities,  as  in  Giessen,  the  incarceration  is 
more  rigorous.  There,  all  visits  and  books  are  denied.  The 


THE  DUEL.  153 

prisoner  is  not  allowed  to  leave  the  prison ;  and  even  the  bed- 
stead is  carried  out  in  the  morning,  so  that  nothing  is  left  to  the 
poor  wretch  the  whole  day  but  to  pace  his  small  apartment,  or 
to  sit  on  that  hard  chair,  and  pour  out  his  complaints  to  the  four 
bare  walls.  Certainly  the  stranger  will  not  select  a  place  where 
such  barbarous  sentiments  are  retained,  and  refinement  of  mind 
has  made  so  little  progress,  for  the  scene  of  his  university  life, 
but  will  rather  turn  his  steps  towards  the  more  humane  and 
polished  Ruperto-Carolo,*  or  some  similar  university. 

•  The  university  of  Heidelberg. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


CHARACTERS  CONNECTING  THEMSELVES  WITH  STUDENT  LIFE. 


THE  appearance  of  the  Red  Fisherman  in  our  last  chapter 
has  brought  before  our  mind's  eye  some  other  of  the  creatures 
of  the  students,  to  whom  we  cannot  better  devote  a  brief  chap- 
ter than  in  the  present  place.  These  are  the  Binsen-Bube,  the 
Hofrath  Diehl,  and  the  Frau  Gottliebin.  And  we  would  have 
the  renowned  Red  Fisherman  to  understand,  that  we  mean  not 
in  bringing  these  personages  into  connexion  with  his  name  to 
bring  his  dignity  into  question,  nor  for  a  moment  to  place  in 
comparison  with  him  the  two  former  of  these  individuals,  over 
whose  heads  he  looks  down  from  the  clouds  of  fame.  The 
Binsen-Bube,  or  as  he  is  also  called,  the  Blumen-Bube,  that  is, 
the  Rush-boy,  or  the  Flower-boy,  will  figure  in  another  part  of 
the  volume,  and  therefore  must  first  stand  forth  the  Herr  Ho- 
frath Diehl,  or  in  pure  English,  the  Privy  Counsellor  Diehl,  an 
individual  on  whom  many  foreigners  must  have  stumbled  in 
Heidelberg. 

This  individual  has  served  for  some  thirty  years  to  amuse  the 
rackety  young  men  by  his  original  nonsense ;  and  we  lament  to 
be  obliged  to  say  that  the  students  of  a  former  time  were  not 
wholly  guiltless  of  originating  the  condition  in  which  he  now 
finds  himself.  He  is  a  melancholy  example  of  a  student  scathed 
in  his  career ;  and  who  has,  from  one  unfortunate  hour,  sunk 
continually  deeper  and  deeper  into  the  depths  of  misery  and 


CHARACTERS  OF  STUDENT  LIFE.         155 

insignificance.  What  part  he  played  as  a  student  we  are  not 
able  precisely  to  state ;  but  this  must  be  certain,  that  he  never 
could  have  been  enlightened  by  the  sun  of  reason  as  men  on  the 
average  are,  and  now  it  is  with  him  an  everlasting  eclipse.  Ac- 
cording to  the  opinions  of  some,  he  must  unluckily  have  been 
walking  under  a  great  umbrella  when  reason  was  rained  down 
from  heaven.  He  thus  early  became  a  plaything  in  the  hands 
of  men  who  were  base  enough  to  abuse  his  simplicity.  He 
received  a  forged  letter,  containing  the  intelligence  that  he  was 
appointed  a  privy  counsellor  of  the  Hesse  Darmstadt  court,  and 
the  scoundrels  who  deceived  him  advised  him  to  use  some  pecu- 
liar kind  of  pomatum,  which  should  give  to  his  head  a  look  of 
official  dignity.  The  upshot  of  this  infamous  business  was  that 
he  lost  nearly  all  his  hair  by  this  application,  and  was  brought 
back  from  Darmstadt,  whither  he  had  gone  to  take  possession 
of  his  office,  to  the  university  a  crazed  man.  From  the  conse- 
quences of  this  lamentable  history  he  has  never  recovered.  His 
mind,  weak  before,  has  since  remained  hopelessly  confused. 
He  has  continued  to  occupy  a  small  chamber,  where  he  employs 
himself  busily  in  scheming  and  maturing  plans  for  the  improve- 
ment of  the  world;  for  the  maintenance  of  the  European  balance 
of  power ;  for  the  better  pursuit  of  philosophy,  and  for  bringing 
it  into  a  better  connexion  and  alliance  with  other  branches  of 
education ;  and  in  the  discovery  of  an  elixir  of  longevity.  The 
results  of  his  profound  meditations  are  laid  down  in  vast  masses 
of  manuscripts,  which,  alas!  like  the  Journey  from  Stolpe  to 
Danzig,*  have  never  been  able  to  find  a  publisher.  Yet  they 
are  by  no  means  useless  to  their  author,  if  they  are  unappre- 
ciated by  the  world.  He  employs  them  as  mattrasses  and  pil- 
lows for  his  bed ;  and  he  busies  himself  with  scattering  great 
quantities  of  water  out  of  his  window  in  order  to  dissipate  those 
heavy  vapours  which  have  prevented  the  booksellers  from  per- 
ceiving what  would  be  so  greatly  to  their  advantage.  During 
the  day,  this  singular  man  traverses  all  the  streets,  and  goes 

*  The  everlasting  subject  of  regret  to  the  merchant  in  Kottebue's  comedy 
Pagen-Streiche. 


156  CHARACTERS  CONNECTED 

round  to  all  the  Beer-kneips.  With  short  and  measured  steps 
he  walks  about  clad  in  an  old  coat  which  he  owes  to  the  kind- 
ness of  some  student.  Now  it  is  a  polonaise,  now  a  velvet  frock, 
and  anon  it  is  a  mackintosh.  He  wears,  like  the  student,  a  little 
cap,  from  below  which  hangs  his  scanty  and  white  hair.  His 
countenance  has  a  singular  expression  of  mixed  pride  and 
humility,  of  friendliness  and  melancholy;  and  in  his  right  hand 
he  carries  a  light  stick,  in  such  a  manner  as  if  every  moment 
he  was  about  to  raise  it  in  the  act  of  demonstrating  some  of  his 
cosmopolitan  propositions.  This  moment  he  picks  up  from  the 
street  some  worthless  fragment,  and  even  a  bit  of  wood  for  his 
fire ;  the  next  instant  he  whistles  his  little  dog,  a  faithful  compa- 
nion to  which  he  is  most  fondly  attached ;  and  now  he  is  greet- 
ing this  person  and  the  other,  with  the  words  "  How  goes  it, 
my  friend,  to-day,  with  thee?"  for  he  stands  on  the  Smollis  with 
every  body,  that  is,  he  puts  himself  on  the  familiar  footing  of 
thee  and  thou ;  to  another,  "  Good-day,  my  dear  son." 

In  the  Kneips  he  seeks  to  attract  attention  by  an  harangue, 
or  by  his  remarks  on  the  affairs  of  the  day.  He  then  waits 
with  quietness  till  the  landlord,  in  requital  for  the  drawing  to- 
gether of  hearers,  sets  before  him  a  small  refreshment,  or  till  a 
compassionate  guest  treats  him  to  a  choppin  of  beer,  or  pre- 
sents him  with  a  few  kreutzers.  Formerly  he  had  a  stall  in  the 
half-yearly  fair,  where  he  sold  partly  pins  made  by  himself,  and 
partly  other  wares,  as  knives  and  scissors,  and  such  like,  at  double 
the  price  at  which  the  man  at  the  next  stall,  who  furnished  him 
with  them,  did.  That  our  readers  may  have  some  idea  of  the 
character  and  quality  of  the  worthy  privy  counsellor's  compo- 
sitions, of  which  he  says  he  has  at  least  eighteen  thousand 
sheets  by  him,  we  give  a  specimen  which  was  written  expressly 
for  us,  and  which  the  reader  may  or  may  not,  just  as  he  is  dis- 
posed, try  his  teeth  upon.  We  have,  however,  no  doubt  but 
that  those  sagacious  and  penetrating  people  who  have  put  in  the 
mouth  of  Jean  Paul  Richter  so  many  things  which  he  never 
thought  of,  will  also  do  our  Hofrath  the  same  most  obliging 
kindness,  and  wish  right  heartily  that  he  may  have  the  good 
fortune  to  find  at  least  one  such  commentator. 


WITH  STUDENT  LIFE.  157 

A  TREATISE,  composed  at  Heidelberg  the  29th  of  October, 
1840;  and  styled,  a  "  Little  Memorial  and  Gift  of  Friendship, 
from  Friend  von  Diehl,  Grand-ducal  Privy  Counsellor  of  Baden, 
and  State  Counsellor  of  the  Mysteries  of  Heidelberg,  to  such  of 
his  friends  as  love  the  so-called  Strictly  Right,  out  of  which 
every  thing  reasonable  by  degrees  continually  developes  itself." 

Now  an  author,  who  sees  himself  busy  at  his  writing-table  upon 
a  composition,  has  to  give  to  them  that,  as  an  inoculation  of 
every  thing,  whatever  it  may  be,  which  he  has  in  his  spirit  con- 
secrated to  all  worthiness,  and  so  that  it  shall  not  be  difficult  to 
hear  and  understand,  since  it  contains  many  incredible  things. 
As  he  never  in  his  time  was  so  far  advanced  that  he  could  learn 
to  understand  so  much  as  he  was  striving  after,  as  he  was  so 
poor,  so  very  poor,  therefore  he  was  obliged  to  thrust  back 
every  thing  of  that  kind  to  the  period  when  finite  things  shall 
no  longer  be  finite.  It  is  to  be  desired  that  his  inquiries  should 
be  continued  either  by  himself,  or  by  others  of  the  student  class 
who  go  forth  as  teachers,  accompanied  by  the  necessary  aca- 
demical freedom,  that  is  without  all  enactments  and  restraint. 
Let  the  pen  have  its  course,  as  his  thoughts  for  the  most  part 
have  unfolded  themselves,  the  spirit  and  the  eye  running  through 
the  right  hand,  and  his  ideas  thus  walking  forth  upon  paper. 
Spirit,  eye,  and  hand  !  hands  pressed  together !  then  draws  the 
eye  every  thing  so  through  it,  as  the  sucking  babe  draws  milk, 
that  it  must  burst  forth  in  some  shape,  as  that  milk  in  the  babe, 
if  obstructed  in  its  natural  current,  will  spring  through  in  erup- 
tions. But  the  Princes  should  take  care  of  this,  who  have 
power,  to  advance  the  wise,  so  that  they  may  be  able  to  live, 
that  they  may  be  safe  from  the  claws  of  an  old  wife's  company, 
and  may  not  be  thrown  about  as  feathers  in  the  world,  called 
also  the  great  city  street, — that  in  the  University  cities  those  of 
the  grade  of  witches  may  not  wash  away  all  that  belongs  to  the 
liberty  of  the  duel  in  general.  Especially  shines  this  out  of  the 
Bible,  out  of  the  Testament — where  the  Dutch  prescribe  the 
gospels  as  well  as  the  epistles,  like  physic,  that  they  may  preach 
upon  it  as  the  Bauers  to  their  servants,  when  they  have  cleared 

14 


158  CHARACTERS  CONNECTED 

out  their  stables,  "  You  must  make  a  bee-hive ;  set  about  it, 
make  it  quickly  with  a  dung-fork  and  the  handle  of  a  flail." 
Preaching  such  nonsense  do  the  Dutch  divines  wring  themselves 
out  as  an  old  woman  wrings  out  a  wet  cloth,  yielding  only  that 
which  men  have  no  occasion  for,  and  without  which  they  would 
be  more  of  men  than  with  it.  Thus  money  and  the  necessaries 
of  life  are  continually  decreased,  or  rather  are  rolled  out  thinly 
till  they  overspread  and  cover  up  the  spirit  of  man,  as  a  sur- 
geon spreads  out  his  plaster  to  the  extent  of  two  and  twenty 
yards. 

Two  and  twenty  years  have  I  laboured  incessantly  to  defeat 
these  drifts  of  the  old  wives,  for  the  good  of  all  states,  but  the 
more  I  labour  the  more  enemies  spring  up.  Still  must  I  of  ne- 
cessity stand  up  for  the  princes,  since  that  dwells  in  me  which 
man  styles  duty.  During  the  half  of  that  two  and  twenty  years, 
I  have  written  treatises  for  the  guidance  of  students  of  jurispru- 
dence and  criminal  law,  adapted  to  all  cases  and  occasions, 
after  which,  however,  no  man  inquires.  Students  diverge  con- 
tinually farther  and  farther  from  my  views  of  law,  being  influ- 
enced by  the  city  clergy,  who  warn  them  against  them  through 
means  of  the  post.  I  live  in  privacy  with  the  great  Director  of 
the  whole  world ;  yet  have  the  malicious  city  old  wife  gossips 
calumniated  me.  And  this  led  them  to  the  base  action,  for  many 
a  base  deed  is  brought  about  through  medicaments.  The  most 
grievous  evils  not  only  arise  but  continue — I  will  point  out  only 
a  few  of  them.  To  injure  a  man  in  his  eyesight  irreparably, 
— to  damage  his  hearing, — to  cause  his  hair  to  fall  off, — to 
induce  epilepsy, — to  make  his  very  spirit  stand  still !  Instead 
of  that  office  of  important  study  to  which  I  believe  myself  ad- 
vanced, thus  came  I  to  sit  there  where  inexpressible  pains  are 
given,  which  make  every  thing  in  man,  that  is  of  the  nature  of 
man,  cry  out.  But  the  hardest  of  all  was  to  become  a  maniac ! 
To  keep  off  this,  I  wrote  from  nine  to  ten  thousand  sheets, 
drawn  from  life  itself,  to  throw  out  and  express  the  very  kernel 
of  knowledge,  which  must  yet  be  printed.  But  I  am  so  poor, 
that  I  am  always  on  the  point  of  starvation ;  for  many  years  I 
have  belted  myself  more  tightly  in.  I  lodge  at  Widow  Ueber- 


WITH  STUDENT  LIFE.  159 

lin's  on  the  Freisenberg,  who  could,  if  she  pleased,  from  the 
Great  Frederick  of  Prussia,  turn  herself  into  the  Grand  Turk 
himself.  She  was  not,  however,  aware  of  this;  therefore,  I 
assumed  the  crown  of  human  misery,  and  wrote  this  year  six 
hundred  and  fifteen  hefts  (each  about  six  sheets  of  paper). 
Think  only  of  the  diligence  in  my  dwelling ! 

It  were  well  if  a  learned  man  in  Baden  would  set  himself 
upon  a  winter's  work,  in  writing  out  my  manuscripts,  in  trans- 
lating them,  and  sending  them  to  the  press,  and  to  make  an 
extract  for  each  faculty,  of  such  matter  as  relates  to  them.  I 
am  so  poor  that  I  am  quite  unable  to  defray  the  cost  of  such 
printing, 

I  am  the  life — I  have  rent  the  great  secret  out  of  the  bosom 
of  Nature.  I  am  the  sun,  the  love,  the  goodness,  a  secret  that 
the  common  class  of  men  have  to  thank  the  learned  for. 
Frorr*  year  to  year  I  have  continually  learned  more  thoroughly 
the  contents  of  the  surface  of  the  earth.  I  am,  however,  only 
allowed  to  divulge  certain  glimpses  of  this  knowledge,  and  I 
show  it  to  true  friends,  wearing  knowledge  at  my  side,  as  the 
soldier  his  sabre. 

THE  TRUE  FRIEND  FREDERICK  VON  DIEHL. 


Poor  Hofrath  von  Diehl !  A  more  melancholy  and  affecting 
history  than  his  is  not  readily  to  be  conceived ;  and  amid  the 
ravelled  skein  of  his  ideas,  the  memory  of  his  grievous  wrongs 
stands  clear  and  imperishable.  It  would  be  difficult  to  refer  to 
language  more  vividly  descriptive  of  the  surprise  and  anguish, 
and  despair,  to  which  a  human  spirit  may  be  subjected  by  the 
base  wantonness  of  others,  than  that  which  breaks  forth  amid 
the  strange  wanderings  of  this  document  of  his.  The  injured 
eyesight  and  hearing — the  hair  burnt  from  his  head  as  by 
lightning — the  shock  of  astonishment  when  he  finds  himself, 
instead  of  advanced  to  the  post  of  honour  which  had  been 
delusively  promised  him,  thrust  "  there  where  inexpressible 
pains  are  inflicted;  pains  which  make  every  thing  in  man 


160  CHARACTERS  CONNECTED 

which  is  of  the  nature  of  man  cry  out;"  a  prey  also  to 
epilepsy,  and  above  all  to  madness.  Poor  fellow  !  yet  amid 
the  smarting  sense  of  his  irreparable  injuries  he  retains  all  his 
own  humanity  of  feeling.  He  cherishes  no  hatred  against 
mankind.  His  heart  is  sound ;  that  is  not  injured,  though  his 
brain  is ;  and  he  employs  himself  through  the  long  years  of 
his  mental  eclipse,  with  the  perpetual  hope  and  endeavour  to 
benefit,  not  only  his  friends,  his  town,  his  countrymen,  but  all 
mankind.  It  is  well  that  the  gallant  student  in  the  spring-days 
of  his  career,  while  he  runs  on  the  green  and  gay  path  of 
Burschen-life,  is  kind  to  him.  That  he  makes  daily  amends  to 
him,  for  the  crimes  and  follies  of  those  in  a  day  gone  by. 
May  Ihe  brave  youths  of  Ruperto-Carolo  long  cherish  this 
kind  feeling  to  the  unfortunate  Hofrath !  may  they  smoothen 
the  few  years  of  his  earthly  course  to  him !  While  he  lives  in 
the  dreams  of  literary  fame  and  of  boundless  philanthropy,  may 
they  blunt  the  tooth  of  that  poverty  of  which  he  so  painfully 
complains ;  and,  finally,  may  the  brave  hands  of  the  sons  of 
the  Muses,  one  day  lay  that  weak  but  worthily-meaning  head, 
on  which  some  of  their  precursors  heaped  wantonly  such  a 
fearful  calamity,  peacefully  and  honourably  at  rest. 


But  amongst  those  who  derive  principally  from  the  students 
their  support,  we  must  not  forget  the  respectable,  discreet,  and 
amiable  woman,  who  is  to  be  found  stationed  every  day  at  the 
corner  of  the  university  platz.  Here  the  worthy  Frau  Gott- 
liebin  displays  her  treasures  for  sale, — cherries,  grapes,  plums, 
whatever  fruit  in  fact  the  season  affords,  and  of  the  finest 
quality,  separated  into  small  baskets-full.  Every  change  of  the 
season  marks  itself  upon  her  stall  by  the  apparition  of  some 
new  luxury,  and  at  Easter  it  is  gay  with  many-coloured 
Easter-eggs  for  the  children.  In  Germany,  it  is  said,  "  sixty 
kreutzers  make  also  a  gulden,"  and  the  wisdom  of  this  proverb 
has  proved  itself  on  this  good  woman.  She  not  only  possesses 
a  small  house  of  her  own,  but  her  son  has  studied  at  the 


WITH  STUDENT  LIFE.  161 

university,  taken  his  degree,  and  is  already  advanced  to  the 
dignity  of  a  curate  in  the  church ;  yes,  the  worthy  old  dame 
yet  hopes,  and  that  soon,  to  be  able  to  congratulate  him  as 
pastor  of  a  parish.  Her  daughter  is  married  to  a  surgeon  in 
the  Upper  Rhineland,  and  when  from  time  to  time  the  stand  of 
the  old  lady  is  vacant,  in  front  of  the  well-known  Pfalz-hotel, 
nobody  is  afraid  that  it  is  because  she  is  ill,  or  because  the 
weather  is  too  severe  for  her ;  for  summer  and  winter,  in  the 
hottest  sunshine  and  the  bitterest  frost,  there  she  is  at  her  post, 
— no,  there  is  a  new  grandchild  expected,  and  Frau  Gottliebin 
has  disappeared  to  pay  a  visit  to  her  daughter.  She  has 
numbered  many  of  the  present  teachers  of  the  university 
amongst  her  customers,  and  takes  a  lively  interest  in  the 
members  of  the  institution.  She  is  also  very  free  with  well- 
meaning  advice  when  the  course  of  life  of  any  of  the  sons  of 
theJMuses  is  not  to  her  satisfaction.  The  stranger  who  has 
not  tasted  of  her  wares  we  may  well  advise  to  cast  an  ob- 
servant eye  on  her  stall  as  he  passes  it,  and  can  promise  him, 
if  he  chooses  from  it,  a  luxurious  refreshment. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


THE  PRIVATE  LIFE  OF  THE  STUDENT. 

THE  reader  has  hitherto  only  seen  the  students  in  their 
public  life.  Their  private  life,  in  comparison  with  their  public 
and  out-of-door  proceedings,  withdraws  itself  so  much  from 
general  observation,  that  it  is  not  likely  that  it  should  so  soon, 
or  so  forcibly,  strike  the  general  eye,  as  that  does  by  its  bold 
and  prominent  features.  Yet  we  are  confident  that  we  can 
present  to  the  reader  many  an  interesting  picture  if  he  will 
allow  himself  to  accompany  us  into  the  lodging  of  one  of  our 
heroes.  "  In  God's  name,"  Mrs.  Trollope  will  exclaim,  "  what 
are  you  going  to  do  ?  Are  you  mad,  that  you  would  seek 
the  bear  in  his  den  ?"  We  can,  however,  only  beseech  the 
foreigner  not  to  be  deterred  by  the  often  wild  exterior  and 
carriage  of  the  student,  from  paying  a  visit  to  one  or  another 
of  them.  Without  further  hesitation  or  precaution  he  may 
follow  us,  and  make  himself  certain  of  a  friendly  reception, 
especially  from  the  South  German.  Should  any  one  yet  be 
incredulous,  let  him  only  inquire  of  Mr.  Traveller,  who  has  now 
resided  half  a  year  in  Heidelberg,  and  made  his  first  acquain- 
tance with  the  student-world  in  this  manner.  One  of  my 
friends  told  me  that  he  had  introduced  him  to  the  student 
Freisleben.  "  In  his  smoking-room  ?"  asked  I,  in  astonish- 
ment. "  Yes ;  why  not  ?  The  English,"  said  he,  "  have 
strong  nerves,  and  I  wished  to  fortify  his  against  all  weaker 


PRIVATE  LIFE  OF  THE  STUDENT.  163 

impressions,  in  fact,  to  make  him  smoke-proof;  an  experiment 
which  I  hope  even  the  learned  Mrs.  Carleton  herself  would  not 
disapprove  of." 

"  Well,  and  how  did  he  like  it  ?"  inquired  I  farther. 

"  We  had  scarcely  made  our  escape  out  of  the  snow-storm 
of  a  wild  December  day  into  the  house,  when  the  Englishman 
remarked  that  the  whole  abode  had  a  peculiar  look,  which  he 
could  not  for  his  life  describe  or  particularize,  but  which  had  a 
strong  smack  of  the  student.  I  had  purposely  brought  him 
into  a  genuine  student  kneip-house,  and  in  the  entrance,  that 
white  painted  board  on  the  wall,  on  which,  with  their  respective 
numbers,  hung  the  keys  of  the  different  rooms,  caught  his  eye. 
The  narrow  passage  arid  steps  by  which  we  made  our  way 
through  the  house  appeared  strange  to  him.  We  at  length 
reached  the  right  door;  I  opened  it;  the  Englishman  looked 
eagerly  in  ;  but  imagine  his  amazement  as  he  saw  nothing  but 
a  monstrous  cloud  of  smoke.  '  Where  are  we  ?'  he  demanded. 
An  instant  yell  thundered  through  the  smoke  towards  us — a 
whip  whistled  in  the  air,  and  a  tremendous  voice  cried,  '  Down ! 
down !'  '  We  shall  get  no  good  here,'  said  the  Englander. 
« Courage,  courage,'  said  I,  and  we  pressed  forward  into  the 
midst  of  this  smoke-vomiting  volcano.  In  the  meantime  a 
portion  of  the  reek  had  made  its  escape  by  the  open  door ;  it 
became  tolerably  light,  and  we  saw  the  great  spaniel,  who  had 
withdrawn  himself  howling  into  his  basket,  and  friend  Freis- 
leben  standing  with  his  riding-whip  in  his  hand." 

"  That  confounded  dog  of  mine — the  uncourteous  rascal," 
said  he,  "  does  not  understand  how  he  ought  to  receive  a 
stranger.  Mr.  Traveller,  it  rejoices  me  to  see  you  in  my  abode. 
My  friend  has  already  made  me  acquainted  with  your  name." 
He  requested  us  to  be  seated,  and  offered  us  each  a  pipe,  which 
he  himself  had  well  supplied  with  tobacco,  in  the  kindest 
manner. 

"  But,  my  God,"  whispered  the  new  guest  to  me,  "  every 
thing  looks  here  pretty  much  as  with  other  well-bred  people. 
All  so  human.  Ah!  I  am  very  sorry  that  I  am  so  undeceived." 
Yet  a  closer  observation  conducted  the  sufficiently  quick  eye  of 


164  PRIVATE  LIFE  OF 

the  Englishman  to  the  various  peculiarities  there,  and  served  to 
enrich  his  sketch-book  with  sundry  notices,  which  he  has  been 
obliging  enough  to  communicate  to  us. 

The  student  knows  how  to  live  here.  He  has  fitted  up  his 
room  very  commodiously.  The  sleeping-room  certainly  is  some- 
what small ;  often,  rather  an  alcove,  in  which,  besides  his  bed, 
his  wardrobe,  his  dressing-table,  and  a  large  trunk,  there  is  little 
to  be  seen.  But  one  might  almost  pronounce  his  sitting-room 
comfortable,  were  it  not  distinguished  by  rather  too  much  of  a 
lyrical  disorder.  Books,  pipes,  rapiers,  clothes,  coffee,  and 
writing  apparatus,  are  somewhat  too  little  assorted;  and  the 
stove,  standing  in  the  room  itself — but  Germans  in  this  respect 
know  no  better.  Yet  one  must  admit  that  those  little  machines, 
which  look  like  an  adiaphory,  between  a  Roman  urn  and  a 
German  beer-jug,  and  which  one  might  take  by  the  end  of  the 
long  pipe  and  carry  with  one  along  the  streets,  are  very  well 
adapted  to  the  needs  of  the  student,  who  commonly  only  wiles 
away  an  hour  at  home,  and  then  hastens  again  to  the  college, 
since  they  quickly  warm  the  room,  and  as  quickly  let  it  cool 
again.  They  are  readily  made  hot,  so  that  you  may  easily 
when  at  full  heat  light  your  pipe  at  them. 

There  are  not  wanting  tables,  chairs,  a  commode,  a  writing- 
table  and  book-shelves,  and  a  sofa  that  is  pretty  well  used.  Our 
host,  at  first  sight  looked,  to  my  fancy,  somewhat  Turkish,  as 
at  our  morning  visit  he  sat  enjoying  his  pipe  and  coffee,  in  a 
coloured  plaid  morning-gown  and  showy  slippers.  But  the 
legs — no,  they  were  not  crossed  in  Turkish  fashion,  but  stretched 
out  at  will  from  the  sofa  in  true  English  style,  and  seemed  to 
feel  themselves  very  much  at  home  in  the  room.  He  had  a 
handkerchief  thrown  loosely  round  his  neck,  and  the  small, 
round,  and  embroidered  cap  sat  not  inelegantly  on  his  head. 
These  caps,  as  I  learned  in  course  of  conversation,  are  termed 
cerevis,  or  beer-caps.  What  especially  struck  me  in  the  apart- 
ment, were  the  various  decorations  which  adorned  the  walls  in 
gay  rows,  and  the  signification  of  which  our  host  politely 
explained  to  me.  Upon  one  wall  was  displayed  a  long  line  of 
profiles,  all  under  glass,  and  in  small  gilt  frames.  A  coloured 


THE  STUDENT.  165 

Chore-band  falling  from  above,  wound  about  them,  and  com- 
prehended them,  as  it  were,  in  one  great  family.  "  These," 
said  he,  "  are  in  memory  of  the  friends  who  have  contributed  to 
embellish  my  six  semesters  at  the  university:"  and  I  learned  that 
it  was  the  practice,  especially  of  those  who  belonged  to  the  same 
Chore,  mutually  to  honour  each  other  with  those  little  likenesses. 

"  We  have  here,"  said  he,  "  in  Heidelberg,  the  Herr  Munich, 
who  executes  these  things  in  first-rate  style,  and  derives  almost 
a  livelihood  alone  from  this  branch  of  business.  It  is  the  same 
in  other  places.  I  have  already  passed  some  time  in  Jena, 
Berlin,  and  Bonn,  and  have  enjoyed  the  friendship  of  many  a 
brave  Bursche.  There,  you  see  the  views  of  many  a  city 
through  which  I  have  travelled.  They  will  to  the  latest  hour 
yield  me  delightful  recollections."  These,  with  the  well-executed 
portraits  of  many  professors,  filled  a  second  wall.  Amongst 
them  proudly  displayed  themselves  several  printed  duplicates  of 
the  doctoral  diplomas  of  his  friends. 

"  And  whose  likeness  is  this  which  hangs  in  the  midst  ?"  I 
asked.  "  That,"  he  replied, "  is  the  portrait  of  our  famous  Pawk- 
doctor,  which  cannot  be  wanting  in  any  kneip." 

On  the  third  wall  1  beheld  pipes  of  all  forms  and  sizes,  from 
the  meerschaum  to  the  clay  pipe;  and  my  polite  host  promised 
me  at  the  next  opportunity,  to  give  me  a  lecture,  as  he  expressed 
it,  on  these  articles  of  furniture.  My  eye  was  now  caught  by 
the  garniture  which  I  beheld  about  the  looking-glass.  It  was 
hung  round  with  ribands  of  various  colours,  and  above  it 
appeared  the  remains  of  garlands.  As  I  noticed  them  my  host 
said — "  See,  those  are  flowers  out  of  the  mourning  garlands 
which  deck  many  a  departed  friend  who  sleeps  in  the  cool 
earth;  which  we  carefully  preserve." 

"And  the  ribands  with  the  many  inscriptions  and  the  dates?" 
I  asked.  "Those,"  said  he,  "are  my  Chore-brothers;  and  the 
date  indicates  the  foundation-day  of  our  Verbindung" 

On  the  fourth  wall  were  to  be  seen  a  Schlager  with  the 
Chore-colours;  a  chore-cap  and  a  guitar,  with  several  coloured 
rosettes.  There  stood  also  a  little  table,  and  upon  it  apparatus 
for  drinking  and  smoking;  a  large  Deckel-glass  with  a  lid, 


166  PRIVATE  LIFE  OF 

having  upon  it  an  engraved  inscription,  "  Traumansdorf  to  his 
Freisleben,  18th  July,  1838;"  an  elegant  little  casket  with 
tobacco,  a  spill-vase,  a  study  lamp,  a  vessel  denominated  the 
Pope,  to  receive  the  ashes  of  the  tobacco  on  emptying  the  pipe, 
and  an  incombustible  spill,  or  Fidebus,  a  new  discovery,  and 
certainly  one  of  the  most  useful  of  the  nineteenth  century.  This 
consists  of  a  small  strong  coloured  glass  tube,  which  is  partly 
filled  with  spirits  of  wine,  and  closed  with  a  cork;  through 
which  a  wire  is  thrust,  and  to  the  bottom  end  of  which  wire  is 
secured  a  small  knob  of  wood  wrapped  in  cotton  wool.  This 
wire  has  a  ring  at  the  top,  by  which  it  is  pulled  out,  and  the 
knob  ignited  at  the  lamp  when  it  is  wished  to  light  a  pipe — a 
convenient  piece  of  machinery,  and  also  forming  an  ornament 
to  the  table. 

As  I  continued  to  observe  these  mysteries,  my  host  took  up 
the  guitar,  and  touching  the  strings,  sung, — 

He  who  can  neither  drink,  love,  nor  sing, 
How  scorneth  the  Bursche  so  mean  a  thing ! 

"  I  can  guess,  and  therefore  ask  not,"  I  observed,  "  what  your 
rosettes  mean."  "  It  was  a  delightful  August  ball,"  said  he  to 
his  friend  significantly.  "  And  this  glass,  too,  I  see,  is  the  gift 
of  a  friend,"  I  added.  "  Certainly,  you  are  quite  to  be  envied." 
"  That  is  nothing  extraordinary,"  he  remarked;  "  it  is  the  custom 
amongst  students  to  compliment  each  other  with,  or  to  dedicate 
to  each  other,  as  we  express  it,  such  things.  The  inscriptions 
which  you  see  on  yon  pipe-heads,  on  those  ribands,  on  this  glass, 
we  term  dedications.  They  bear  the  name  of  the  giver,  and 
the  day  which  is  the  most  distinguished  in  our  lives  through 
some  remarkable  event,  on  which  day  such  a  gift  is  generally 
given.  Let  us  add  to  the  so-called  gifts  the  silhouettes  and  the 
sword,  and  you  have  altogether  what  the  student  is  accustomed 
to  dedicate  to  his  fellow-student.  But  be  seated.  The  coffee 
will  be  cold,  and  my  pipe  is  actually  gone  but.  If  you  will  have 
a  morning-gown,  I  have  another,  and  I  am  always  sorry  to  see 
any  one  squeezed  up  in  an  uncomfortable  schnippel  (student 


THE  STUDENT.  167 

term  for  a  dress  coat).  Would  you  think  that  a  German  had 
so  much  regard  to  comfort?  Ha!  ha!  Much  more  than  you 
imagine.  Fancy  yourself  before  an  English  fireplace  (opening 
the  door  of  the  stove) ;  since,  without  that,  I  know  you  don't 
feel  yourself  comfortable;  and  that  we  also  are  aware  of  the 
pleasantness  of  a  fireplace,  is  shown  by  our  frequently  having 
the  stove  open  into  the  room.  And  do  you  know  that  we  have 
an  equivalent  for  your  word  comfort,  of  which  you  are  so  proud?" 

"  If  you  will  tell  me  what  it  is,"  I  answered,  "  I  will  believe 
it ;  but  I  have  hunted  through  every  dictionary  for  it  in  vain, 
since  your  words  behaglich,  gemiithlich,  bequem,  don't  express 
the  actual  thing." 

"  Pomadig,"  cried  he,  laughing ;  "  that's  the  lordly  word ! 
but  it  is  only  one  of  our  termini  technici,  and  is  not  yet  sanc- 
tioned by  Adelung." 

"  I  will  swear  from  this  day  forward,"  I  exclaimed,  "  that 
the  students  are  pomadig"  "  Have  pomade,"  said  he,  correct- 
ing me,  "  for  we  are  no  pomadenhengste.  When  I  am  laid  up 
some  day,"  he  continued,  "  I  will  make  you  a  vocabulary  of 
our  terms  with  their  synonymes,  and  shall  felicitate  myself 
thereby  on  contributing  to  a  more  perfect  knowledge  of  the 
German  language  in  England.  You  will  take  care  to  publish 
it?"  "  Assure  yourself  of  that,"  I  replied. 

"  But  what  has  the  Boot-fox  brought  ?"  asked  my  host  of  his 
friend,  who  during  this  time  had  been  in  conversation  with  a 
queer-looking  fellow.  "  A  duplicate  diploma  from  Schmidt," 
he  replied.  "  What  has  the  old  boy  then  bitten  of  the  sour 
apple  at  last !"  "  Yes  !  he  has  worked  like  a  dragon — he  has 
geoxed  tremendously  during  the  last  year,  and  has  now  taken 
the  highest  degree." 

Freisleben  sings: — 

Therefore  lets  he  fall  a  tear, 

And  thinks — ah !  but  youth  was  dear ! 

And  gives  me  an  examen  summa  cum  laude. 

"  I  am  very  curious,"  said  I,  "  to  know  who  the  man  was  that 
walked  in  without  knocking,  and  whom  you  styled  Boot-fox. 


168  PRIVATE  LIFE  OF 

He  looked  like  a  servant  that,  instead  of  livery,  a  man  has 
stuck  into  a  student's  coat ;  and  what  a  cap  he  had  on !  And 
besides  that,  he  had  such  a  curious  voice  that  one  could  have 
thought  it  belonged  to  some  other  person,  or  that  somebody 
else  was  in  the  room  when  he  spoke." 

"  Ha  !  ha  !  I  will  explain  that  to  you.  This  odd  fellow  be- 
longs to  a  class  of  ministering  spirits  who  live  entirely  by  the 
students.  We  dub  them  Boot-foxes,  because  they  clean  our 
boots  and  clothes.  They  are  bound  to  run  also  on  our  com- 
missions, and  must  figure  in  processions  and  public  pageants. 
As  the  poor  devil  must  turn  out  very  early  in  the  mornings,  his 
voice  snaps  and  cracks  huskily  from  the  effects  of  the  raw  air, 
like  that  of  a  youth  in  the  transition-state  from  a  hobbledehoy  to 
a  man,  till  by  degrees  it  balances  itself  in  one  key.  For  the 
rest,  he  is  a  respectable  father  of  a  family,  and  his  wife  is  gene- 
rally a  washerwoman  for  the  students." 

"  All  that  is  easy  enough  to  understand,"  I  replied.  "  Why 
do  you  call  him  a  boot-fox  ?" 

"  Ah,  I  forgot  to  observe,  that  in  earlier  times  the  foxes, 
who,  as  you  know  are  students  just  come  from  the  schools, 
and  whom  we  yet  play  many  a  joke  upon,  were  frequently 
obliged,  very  improperly,  to  perform  those  offices  which  our 
Famulus  now  discharges,  and  thence  this  name  dates  itself." 

"  I  have  made  myself  acquainted,"  said  I,  "  with  a  new 
species  of  foxes.  The  other  day  I  heard  a  professor  spoken  of 
as  a  school-fox." 

"  Yes,  yes ;  this  name  is  given  contemptuously  to  one  of 
those  teachers  who,  without  penetrating  into  the  spirit  of  know- 
ledge, turns  into  his  scholars,  by  hogsheads,  the  unfermented 
deluge  of  material,  and  reckons  a  man  learned  if  he  has  only 
piled  up  in  his  hollow  skull  a  chaos  of  things  merely  gathered 
by  rote.  God  be  praised,  these  scarecrows  become  scarcer 
from  day  to  day.  Yet,  alas !  there  lies  in  the  German  word 
Gelehrter,  the  idea  of  one  who  has  been  taught  without  our 
being  able  to  say  whether  he  has  actually  learned.  The  French 
say  not  les  enseignes  but  les  savants ;  and  the  English  not  the 
taught  ones,  but  the  learned." 


THE  STUDENT. 

"  But,"  said  I,  "  your  Gekhrter,  of  the  present  day,  we  may 
also  certainly  style  the  learned." 

"  By  all  means ;  and,  thank  God,  but  with  few  exceptions." 

"  Knowest  thou,"  asked  friend  Eckhardt,  "  whence  comes 
the  term  school-fox  ?" 

"  Not  clearly  ?" 

"  Then  hear !  M.  Just  Ludwig  Brismann,  born  at  Triptis, 
in  Voiglande,  who  had  been  schoolmaster  in  Hof,  Zwickau, 
and  Naumburg,  and  who  died  Professor  of  Greek  in  Jena,  on 
the  19th  of  August,  1585,  was  accustomed  to  wear  a  great- 
coat lined  with  fox-skin.  This  sort  of  clothing,  which  he  had 
been  used  to  wear  before  he  came  to  live  at  Jena,  he  still  con- 
tinued to  sport  there.  The  students  in  Jena  looked  upon  this 
raiment,  which  was  then  quite  out  of  date  and  very  singular, 
as  so  odd  that  they  made  game  of  it,  and  those  of  them  who 
had  .previously  known  him  as  schoolmaster,  dubbed  him 
School-fox.  Thence  sprung  the  name  of  school-foxery,  which 
comprehends  every  thing  pedantic,  contemptible,  and  degrad- 
ing." 

"  And  may  I  ask,"  I  added,  "  what  you  pay  this  precious 
Bursche  for  his  important  services?  I  ask,  since  I  think  of 
staying  here  this  winter,  and  would  therefore  willingly  en- 
lighten myself  on  all  matters  of  housekeeping." 

"  He  receives  a  gulden  (twenty-pence  English)  monthly." 

"  A  servant  for  a  pound  a-year !     Was  the  like  ever  heard  !" 

"  You  must  recollect,"  said  Freisleben,  "  that  we  are  for 
the  rest  of  the  day  attended  by  the  house-besom,"  the  student 
phrase  for  housemaid,  who  also  in  Berlin  is  styled  schtavin,  or 
she-slave." 

"  Hast  thou  heard  the  anecdote,"  interrupted  Eckhardt,  "  of 
Schmidt's  answer  to  our  boot-fox  the  other  morning  ?" 

"  No ;  let  us  hear  it." 

"  The  Famulus  came  very  eai'ly  to  Schmidt's  bedside,  and 
said,  very  laconically — '  the  Geheimrath  Forst  is  dead  to-night. 
Have  you  any  other  commands  V  « Yes,'  answered  Schmidt, 
still  heavy  with  sleep,  « I  command  the  Geheimrath  Langsam 

15 


170  PRIVATE  LIFE  OF 

(a  very  rich  and  miserly  old  gentleman)  to  die  too,  and  to 
make  me  his  heir.' " 

"  Famously  answered !"  said  Freisleben ;  "  but,  Mr.  Travel- 
ler, you  would  know  more  of  our  household  regulations.  Our 
House-Philistine  must  provide  for  all  our  domestic  necessaries, 
bringing  in  the  account  monthly,  which,  however,  we  are  not 
obliged  so  very  exactly  to  pay.  They  furnish  us  with  wood, 
lights,  etc.  Breakfast  we  commonly  brew  for  ourselves,  in  its 
proper  machine.  For  the  lodging,  consisting  of  two  rooms, 
we  pay  perhaps  from  thirty  to  forty  gulden,  and  the  house- 
besom  receives  besides,  each  semester,  two  kronen  thaler — nine 
shillings,  English." 

"  Upon  my  word,  you  live  right  reasonably  in  Heidelberg." 

"  Not  quite  so  much  so  as  you  imagine.  If  you  take  into 
the  account  the  expense  of  the  college  lectures,  you  cannot 
well,  at  least  pleasantly,  live  under  800  or  1000  gulden.  There 
are  universities  where  you  may  live  much  cheaper,  but  few 
where  you  can  live  so  agreeably  as  here.  You  know  how 
Lichtenberg  has  divided  the  sciences.  So  I  might  here  divide 
the  universities  into  such  as  where  a  man  may  live  cheaply  and 
well,  to  which  class  Munich  and  Vienna  particularly  belong ; 
where  he  may  live  cheap  and  badly,  as  in  many  of  the  smaller 
universities,  particularly  Halle,  which  affords  only  nutriment 
for  the  hungerers  after  knowledge ;  where  he  may  live  well 
and  somewhat  expensively,  as  at  Heidelberg ;  and  finally, 
where  he  may  live  dearly  and  ill,  of  which  the  great  Berlin  is 
an  example.  I  speak  here  only  of  the  material  life,  apart  from 
which,  every  university  has  its  peculiarities  in  many  respects ; 
in  short,  has  its  own  ton.  When  you  have  learnt  thoroughly 
to  understand  Heidelberg,  and  then  afterwards  visit  other 
German  universities,  what  a  variety  will  you  not  find." 

"  I  would  gladly  learn,"  said  I,  "  the  differences  of  these 
various  universities  which  you  say  are  so  characteristic.  It  is 
a  very  interesting  subject." 

"  But  a  long  one,"  said  my  friend,  "  which  we  must  reserve 
for  another  occasion.  But,"  turning  to  Freisleben,  he  added, 


THE  STUDENT.  171 

"I  forgot  to  tell  you  something  which  the  Boot-fox  has  com- 
municated." 

"  What  is  it  ?"  asked  Freisleben. 

"  The  Widow  Mutch  begs  that  she  may  be  allowed  to  speak 
with  thee." 

"  And  what  wants  she  ?" 

"  O,  she  creeps  humbly  to  the  cross,  and  prays  earnestly  that 
we  will  again  take  our  meals  there." 

"  Well,  if  she  behaves  herself,  we  will  see  what  the  S.  C.  can 
do." 

"  That,"  said  I,  "  if  I  remember  right,  is  the  woman  whom 
you  said  had  been  put  into  ven-uf,  or  under  the  bann." 

"  The  same." 

"  And  are  all  the  students,  then,  accustomed  to  take  their 
dinners  there  ?" 

"  Q,  no.  Part  of  them  at  the  Gasthouses  (inns) ;  part  here  and 
there,  with  private  people,  who  keep  a  table  for  us,  and  even 
send  us,  if  required,  our  meals  up  into  our  chambers.  About 
thirty  of  us  took  our  dinners  at  this  aforesaid  widow's,  and 
paid  each  twenty  kreutzers  the  day  (not  quite  seven-pence). 
But  towards  the  conclusion  of  the  last  semester,  it  was  no 
longer  to  be  endured !  simply  and  eternally  cow-beef — and  at 
last  it  grew  still  worse.  Thereupon  it  was  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  give  Madame,  the  Philistine,  a  lecture." 

"  Excuse  me,"  I  interrupted,  "  but  I  must  first  beg  for  a  solu- 
tion of  the  term  Philistine,  which  you  so  often  use." 

"  We  comprehend  all  who  are  not  students  under  the  name 
of  Philistines.  In  a  more  restricted  sense,  we  understand  by 
Philistines,  inhabitants  of  the  city,  and  distinguish  them  from 
the  Handwerks-Burschen,  by  giving  to  the  latter  the  title  of 
Knoten ;  and  the  shopkeepers'  young  men  that  of  Schwiinge, 
or  Ladenschwiinge,  that  is,  Pendulums,  or  Shop-pendulums. 
Others  write  the  word  Knoten,  Gnoten,  and  say  that  the  artisans 
and  journeymen  were  so  called  from  Genossen,  Handwerks- 
Genossen,  comrades  or  artisan-comrades,  thence  corrupted  to 
Genotten,  and  finally  to  Gnoten.  We  have  already  stated  that 
Gnoten  was  supposed  to  be  derived  from  their  fighting  with 


172  PRIVATE  LIFE  OF 

Knoten-stocken,  or  knotty  sticks.  Thus,  as  in  most  cases  of 
philological  derivation,  a  fine  dispute  might  be  raised ;  it  would 
be  an  interesting  subject,  and  the  auther  might  be  rewarded 
for  his  pains  by  the  impressions  of  some  dozen  bludgeons  on 
his  back.  But,  not  to  lose  sight  of  the  object  of  your  inquiry 
— our  domestic  arrangements — I  here  remark  that  the  Philistine 
in  whose  house  we  lodge,  is  styled  house-philistine,  and  his 
wife,  the  Philose.  The  student  who  is  quartered  with  us  in 
the  same  house  is  our  House-Bursche ;  and  he  who  shares 
with  us  our  apartments,  is  to  us  a  Stuben-Bursche,  or  Room- 
Fellow." 

"  I  thank  you,"  I  added.  "  I  have  certainly  put  your  com- 
mentatorial  patience  to  a  severe  trial." 

"  One  speaks  of  oneself,"  he  replied,  "  generally  pretty  will- 
ingly. We  have  that  feeling  in  common  with  all  mortals." 

"  But,"  I  interposed,  "  it  seems  to  me  that  you  enjoy  your 
comfortable  room  very  little,  spite  of  all  its  comforts,  if  you 
neither  dine  nor  take  your  tea  there  of  an  evening." 

"  Tea  !"  he  exclaimed,  "  tea  !  yes  that  is  a  right  good  beve- 
rage, but  for  daily  use  a  little  too  sentimental.  Look  you — our 
course  of  life  is  this : — In  the  morning  we  pursue  our  studies 
over  a  cup  of  coffee,  and  a  pipe  of  tobacco ;  then  we  go  to  the 
classes.  About  twelve  o'clock  we  dine ;  then  to  the  coffee- 
house ;  and  how  much  we  study  after  that,  or  how  we  other- 
wise employ  ourselves,  you  will  presently  see.  But  in  the 
evening,  we  resort  to  the  Kneip,  and  drink  no  tea,  but  beer ; 
and  to  the  Kneip  we  now  cordially  invite  you. 

"  But  don't  think  we  despise  what  may  be  called  your  national 
beverage;  for  that  also,  comes  a  time.  When  in  the  long 
evenings  we  sit  behind  our  books,  and  the  anticipation  of  the 
examination  stands  like  a  spectre  at  the  door,  and  bars  it  to 
our  egress,  then,  praised  be  tea !  and  its  black  brother,  coffee ; 
jt  is  then  they  who  must  cheer  us,  when  the  spirit  of  life 
threatens  to  faint,  quiver,  and  expire.  But  excuse  me,  I  must 
now  unto  the  college,  which  I  cannot  to-day  very  well  schw'An- 
zen.  So  fare  ye  well !" 

And  thus  we  parted. 


THE  STUDENT.  173 

N.  B. — The  expression  Ein  Kolleg  schwanzen — to  tail  a  lec- 
ture— means,  to  put  off  its  attendance.  The  term  is  derived 
from  an  earlier  meaning  of  the  word  schwiinzen,  for  which 
the  term  durch-brennen,  to  burn  through,  is  now  used,  and  is 
equivalent  to  the  English  phrase,  "to  give  leg-bail  to  your 
creditors."  In  the  persiflage  on  the  Burschen-comment,  entitled 
" Dissertatio  de  Quomodone,  etc."  by  Martial  Schluck,  from 
which  we  have  before  quoted,  it  is  said,  "  an  honourable  Bursche 
has  the  right  not  to  pay  his  debts ;  that  is,  he  may  schw'dnzen 
and  squiscion  himself,  make  a  squis  in  his  shoes, — meaning 
that  he  may  sacrifice  his  tail  like  a  fox,  who  will  rather  lose 
his  tail  than  his  life;  and  thus  will  the  student  rather  leave 
behind  him  his  trunk  and  cloak-bag,  than  wait  to  be  clapped 
into  prison. 

When  a  student  attends  a  lecture  which  ought  to  be  paid  for, 
but  does  not  pay  for  it,  he  is  said  to  "  hospitiren ;"  and  he  is 
allowed  twice  or  three  times  to  hospitiren.  If,  however,  he 
does  this  for  a  whole  semester,  in  order  to  devote  the  price  of 
the  lecture  to  some  other  object,  the  students  call  this  "  to  shoot 
a  lecture."  The  description  of  this  term,  is  also  thus  explained 
by  Schluck.  "  The  student  has  the  right  to  seize  upon  other 
people's  property,  that  is,  to  shoot,  to  prefer,  to  lay  the  charge 
upon  another.  This  is  a  new  mode  of  putting  oneself  into  pos- 
session of  something ;  that  is,  to  commit  a  theft  of  a  life-and- 
soulless  thing,  and  call  it  only  a  half-theft.  Shooting  distin- 
guishes itself  essentially  from  stealing.  First,  by  the  student 
privately  conveying  it  away  at  once ;  and  secondly,  by  giving 
the  owner  of  the  property  notice  of  what  he  had  done,  after 
it  is  done.  This  mode  of  taking  possession  is  not  so  much 
according  to  our  customs  as  those  of  the  Lacedaemonians, 
which  brought  no  shame  to  any  one  by  the  statutes  of  Lycur- 
gus,  but  rather  honour  and  fame,  to  him  who  unobserved  and 
in  a  clever  style  carried  off  any  thing." 

The  principal  objects  of  conveyance,  are  pipes,  sticks,  spurs, 
chore-tassels  for  the  embellishment  of  pipes,  riding-whips,  and 
money  to  the  amount  of  a  doubel.  What  is  more  than  that 
must  be  merely  taken  in  loan,  if  it  be  there  to  take. 

15* 


174  PRIVATE  LIFE  OF 

Friend  Freisleben  has,  in  this  chapter,  given  us  some  notifi- 
cations of  the  manner  in  which  he  amuses  himself  in  his  hours 
of  relaxation.  Yet  we  must  hope  that  these  are  not  all  the 
fountains  of  enjoyment,  that  are  flowing  for  his  refreshment, 
when  he  finds  himself  exhausted  with  such  arduous  battles  in 
the  field  of  science.  Our  care  indeed,  is  unnecessary,  since  the 
inventive  head  of  the  student  has,  in  all  times,  least  of  all  ne- 
glected this  portion  of  his  life. 

But  before  we  speak  of  other  diversions,  which  our  hero, 
partly  in  his  own  and  partly  in  other  Kneips  enjoys,  or  without, 
in  the  free  air,  we  must  devote  a  few  lines  to  that  faithful  com- 
panion, his  dog.  Some  will,  perhaps  say,  "  What !  is  it  not 
enough  that  we  have  to  do  with  the  wild  student,  must  we  also 
encounter  his  unmannerly  hound?"  But  good  reader,  recol- 
lect yourself  of  the  words  of  Wagner  in  Faust : 

E'en  the  wise  man,  howe'er  profound, 

Loves,  when  well  trained,  the  generous  hound, — 

And  well  deserveth  he  thy  favour  too, 

The  student's  scholar,  apt  and  nobly  true. 

It  is  true,  that  a  monstrous  deal  has  already  been  said  of 
the  dog ;  but  by  no  one  has  he  been  more  graphically  described 
than  by  the  immortal  Linnaeus.  He  says,  amongst  other  things, 
"  He  is  the  most  faithful  of  all  creatures ;  dwells  with  man ; 
fawns  on  his  returning  lord;  bears  not  in  his  memory  the 
strokes  he  inflicts  upon  him ;  runs  before  him  on  his  journey ; 
looks  back  at  a  cross-way,  and  seeks  obediently  that  which  is 
lost ;  holds  watch  by  night ;  announces  the  approach  of  any 
one;  and  guards  the  property." 

How  much  do  we  desire  the  eloquence  of  Demosthenes,  that 
we  might  pronounce  a  fitting  panegyric  on  the  dog,  already 
made  illustrious  by  so  many  pens.  We  can,  however,  only 
sketch  the  character  and  manners  of  the  student's  dog  with 
simple  colours,  nevertheless  we  hope  to  do  the  dog-family  some 
service,  and  to  amuse  the  reader  with  some  new  anecdotes. 
Various  as  are  the  young  people  which  are  blown  together,  as 
it  were,  by  the  winds  out  of  every  climate  into  a  University 
city,  as  various  are  the  dogs  which  the  spectator  will  see  fol- 
lowing at  their  heels.  They  are  seldom  brought  with  them  from 


THE  STUDENT.  175 

home ;  but  the  fancy  which  the  student  has  for  the  beast,  has 
created  a  class  of  men,  who  make  a  trade  in  dogs  a  distinct 
branch  of  business.  These  people  also,  for  a  moderate  hono- 
rarium, superintend  the  toilet  of  this  creature,  which  care  is 
particularly  demanded  by  the  luxuriant  growth  of  hair  of  the 
shock.  This  dog,  sometimes,  when  he  comes  new  washed  and 
shorn  out  of  their  hands,  in  the  loss  of  his  monthly  crop  of  hair, 
scarcely  knows  himself  again. 

If  one  reflects  too,  that  every  individual  student,  out  of  the 
multitude  of  dogs,  selects  that  one  which  seems  to  assort  itself 
most  completely  with  his  pleasure  and  humour,  one  sees  pro- 
bably therein  the  ground  of  the  observation  which  we  once 
heard  made  by  an  intelligent  English  lady,  who  asserted  that 
there  was  always  visible  a  great  likeness  between  the  dog  and 
his  master.  We  can  only  corroborate  the  justice  of  this  remark, 
and  ifc  must  strike  every  one,  that  the  dog  continually  picks  up 
first  one  and  then  another  of  the  peculiarities  of  his  master. 

He  who  desires  to  take  a  general  glance  at  the  different  races 
of  dogs  which  inhabit  our  city,  I  counsel  him  to  attend  the 
annual  dog-muster.  This  is  held  in  an  appointed  place  on  an 
appointed  day,  whereto  all  the  dogs  of  the  city,  both  those  of 
the  students  and  the  citizens,  must  be  brought.  These  all  pass, 
in  succession,  under  the  inspection  of  a  beast  doctor,  and  such 
as  neither  through  disease  nor  old  age  fall  under  a  sentence  of 
death,  are  redeemed  by  the  payment  of  a  certain  tax,  and  have 
a  tin  label  hung  on  their  necks,  which  they  wear  for  a  certain 
time.  I  add  here,  in  passing,  a  refutation  of  those  who  assert 
that  the  Germans  are  ungallant,  in  the  fact  that  the  ladies  of  the 
canine  species  are  charged  only  a  gulden  each  for  their  redemp- 
tion, while  the  gentlemen  of  that  race  are  mercilessly  mulcted 
to  the  extent  of  a  gulden  and  a  half. 

Great  and  small,  tall  and  short,  thick  and  thin,  one  or  many 
coloured,  all  meet  here  together.  On  the  one  side,  you  see  the 
heavy  house-dog,  and  the  butcher's  dog,  how  humbly  they 
follow  their  masters ;  the  multitude  of  yaffing  turnspits,  prized 
as  true  watchers ;  on  the  other  hand  you  descry  a  line  of  boot- 
foxes,  who  have  conducted  hither  the  dogs  of  the  students. 


176  PRIVATE  LIFE  OF 

Hither  come  hastening  with  throngs  and  with  pride, 
Lots  of  proud  fellows  from  every  side. 

Reineke  der  Fuchs,  by  Goethe. 

There  is  the  poodle  with  his  thick,  round  head,  with  the 
stumpy  nose  and  hanging  ears;  he  is  propped  on  his  short,  stout 
leg,  and  his  knowing  eye  blinks  forth  from  amongst  the  crisp 
woolly  hair.  He  permits  himself  good-humouredly  to  be  adorned 
with  his  new  order.  Grimly  steps  forth  at  the  call,  the  colossal 
bull-dog,  with  black,  thick,  split  nose,  and  slavering  chops ;  but 
over  him  towers  the  English  mastiff,  in  hairy  coat  of  one  uni- 
form hue.  The  hunting  dog,  in  a  place  where  all  worthy  exer- 
cise of  his  powers  is  denied  him,  has  stretched  himself  out 
calmly,  supporting  his  strong  head  with  its  long  drooping  ears, 
on  his  vigorous  foot.  The  slim  greyhound,  constantly  trembling, 
has  cowered  down  in  a  corner.  Here  and  there  you  discover 
a  fretful  thick-bodied  pug,  with  his  upthrown  snub  nose,  which 
the  popular  speech  styles  a  saddle-nose.  There  is  the  bandy- 
legged Dachs  too,  with  his  deep  sweeping  ears,  dark  colour,  and 
eyes  full  of  intelligence. 

The  dog  of  the  university  leads  a  wholly  peculiar  life,  not 
unlike  that  of  his  master,  since  he  accompanies  him  every  where. 
The  saloon  and  the  College  hall  only  have  closed  their  doors 
against  him.  Hence  it  is  said — 

If  at  home  thou  would 'st  me  find, 
Pray  thee  leave  thy  dog  behind. 

During  the  time  that  the  student  spends  in  these  places,  his 
dog  is  confined  to  his  chamber.  Here  he  fills  up  many  hours 
with  his  dolorous  lamentations,  or  at  the  window  watches  with 
envious  impatience  the  passing  of  his  brethren  along  the  street, 
and  challenges  them  with  savage  yells.  Whether  he  avails 
himself  of  the  books  of  his  master  to  advance  himself  in  science, 
we  will  not  venture  to  say  ;  yet  we  have  ourselves  seen  them  fly 
through  the  window  of  their  abodes  that  were  not  at  a  great 
height  from  the  ground,  and  seeking  their  masters  in  the  College 
hall,  there,  as  very  attentive  Hospitanters,  stay  out  the  remain- 


THE  STUDENT.  177 

der  of  the  lecture.  One  of  my  friends  had  a  white  poodle,  who 
was  accustomed  regularly  to  accompany  him  to  the  indifferently 
attended  lectures  of  a  certain  professor,  where  he  sat  quietly  on 
the  bench  by  his  side,  and  looked  solemnly  into  the  note-book  of 
his  master.  One  day  the  dog  was  absent,  when  the  extremely 
short-sighted  professor,  in  opening  his  lecture,  remarked,  "  Gen- 
tlemen, it  would  be  well  if  you  all  wore  coats  of  one  colour ; 
and  were  they  dark  ones  they  would  be  not  so  much  observed 
by  me,  but  it  struck  me  immediately  that  the  gentleman  in  the 
white  coat  was  absent  to-day !"  The  great  aptness  of  this  crea- 
ture to  be  taught,  often  furnishes  the  students  with  much  enter- 
tainment. He  readily  learns  to  carry  his  master's  stick  and 
portfolio  to  the  College  hall,  whence  on  his  command,  he  returns 
quietly  to  the  house.  He  is  the  best  of  chamber  attendants, 
bringing  in  the  morning  his  master's  slippers  and  pipe.  If  he 
returns  home  at  night  rather  inspirited  by  Bacchus,  he  accom- 
panies him  as  a  safe  conductor,  often  bearing  things  which  he 
has  unwittingly  dropt,  after  him. 

A  dog  at  one  of  the  universities  was  well  known  as  an  excel- 
lent guide.  He  led  his  master  home  every  evening ;  if  he  turned 
into  a  wrong  street,  he  seized  him  by  the  coat,  and  pulled  him 
back ;  if  he  fell  down,  he  barked  loudly  till  he  rose  again ;  and 
when  they  arrived  at  the  house,  the  sagacious  animal  knew 
very  well  how  to  ring  the  bell. 

They  are  also  made  use  of  in  many  a  prank  or  piece  of  wag- 
gery. Thus  it  is  said,  that  once  in  Leipsic,  the  students  accus- 
tomed their  dogs  to  the  most  frequent  Christian  names  of  the 
ladies  of  that  city,  and  so  soon  as  they  came  readily  at  that  un- 
usual call,  the  ungallant  sons  of  the  Muses  allowed  themselves 
the  unpardonable  joke  of  shouting  aloud  those  names  in  the 
public  walks,  so  that  it  is  said,  the  fair  sex  in  surprise  quitted 
the  field. 

In  one  of  the  university  cities,  two  dogs  also  furnished  this 
spectacle.  An  order  had  been  issued,  that,  to  avoid  any  serious 
accidents  from  them,  no  students'  dogs  should  appear  in  public 
except  led  in  a  band.  Presently  was  seen  a  student  with  two 
dogs  in  cords.  The  one  was  a  little  pug  scarcely  two  spans 


178  PRIVATE  LIFE  OF 

high,  which  was  led  in  a  rope  about  as  thick  as  a  man's  arm, 
whilst  the  other,  a  huge  and  monstrous  creature  of  the  kind 
which  the  students  call  Doggen,  apparently  half  mastiff,  half 
bull-dog,  stalked  near  it,  led  by  a  piece  of  twine. 

We  still  see  these  creatures  made  co-workers  in  many  a  frolic. 
At  the  dinner  table,  in  the  public  walk,  in  the  fencing-school, 
and  in  the  evening  at  the  Kneip,  every  where  must  the  dog 
attend  his  master.  He  must  eat  with  him  in  the  same  house ; 
the  master,  indeed,  in  the  chamber,  the  dog  in  the  kitchen ;  for 
which  repast,  however,  is  allowed  on  the  dog's  behalf  two 
kreutzers  a-day.  Neither  are  combats  wanting  between  them, 
whereby  they  may  the  more  resemble  their  masters,  and  to 
which  the  masters,  in  fact,  conduct  them.  In  these  dog-duels 
it  goes  often  much  worse  than  in  those  of  their  lords,  for  they 
seize  each  other  so  furiously  that  it  is  often  difficult  to  separate 
them. 

"  The  dog,"  says  Linnaeus,  "  remembers  not  with  resentment 
the  blows  of  his  master."  The  student's  dog  is  a  striking  ex- 
ample of  the  truth  of  this  remark.  How  often,  when  the 
Bursche  returns  home  from  a  drinking  company,  must  this 
faithful  servant  do  penance  for  the  wild  humours  of  the  evening. 
It  goes  not  better  with  him  on  such  occasions  than  with  many 
a  poor  German  wife,  who  yet  bears  her  lot  with  patience.  She 
still  loves  her  rough  commander,  even  while  he  treats  her  with 
unmanly  rudeness,  and  seeks  to  hide  his  weaknesses.  So  this 
true  creature.  Is  his  lord  in  danger?  he  defends  him  to  the 
last,  and  often  renders  him  the  most  signal  services  in  skirmishes 
with  the  Knoten  ;  yea,  he  hesitates  not  to  attack  the  sacred  per- 
son of  the  beadle.  He  is  denied  admittance  to  the  duel,  because 
he  would  speedily,  as  an  uninvited  second,  spring  between  the 
combatants,  and  as  some  assert,  on  account  of  such  accidents 
as  the  following.  A  duellist  had  his  nose  cut  off,  and  a  large 
bull-dog  which  was  in  the  room — perhaps  they  had  forgot  to 
give  him  his  dinner — greedily  swallowed  it ;  so  greedily,  that  it 
was  impossible  to  prevent  it !  Whether  the  unnosed  Bursche 
had  a  new  one  made  for  him  by  Geheimrath  Gr'afe,  or  whether 
he  afterwards  wore  a  silver  one,  I  am  not  prepared  to  say. 


THE  STUDENT.  179 

The  student  dog  extends  his  student  life  far  beyond  that  of 
his  master,  who  turns  him  over  into  the  hands  of  another  on  his 
own  departure.  It  thus  happens  that  many  of  these  creatures 
travel  from  one  hand  to  another,  till,  finally,  they  belong  to  no 
individual  possessor  but  to  a  whole  Chore,  and  live  a  free, 
unrestrained  life.  They  then  kneipe  in  rotation  with  the 
brethren  of  the  Chore,  all  of  whose  dwellings  they  are  ac- 
quainted with ;  and  if  they  appear  a  little  lost  during  the  rest 
of  the  day,  yet  they  are  regularly  found  at  the  places  of  public 
meeting  for  social  enjoyment.  There  was,  for  instance,  the 
little  Tambourle  here,  which  for  many  years  lived  only  on 
sugar,  which  it  received  from  the  coffee-drinkers  in  a  well- 
known  coffee-house.  At  every  fresh  cup  it  demanded  two  or 
three  pieces  of  sugar,  as  its  established  toll. 

It  is  also  gratifying  to  see,  when  these  welcome  guests  are 
grown  old  and  weak,  how  the  other  dogs  receive  them,  and 
stand  strictly  by  these  Bemossed  Heads  when  they  are  at- 
tacked by  the  vulgarer  dogs  of  the  streets.  The  cultivated  dog 
is  no  longer  a  merely  carnivorous  animal,  he  has  accustomed 
himself  to  a  variety  of  food ;  but  it  is  perhaps  the  peculiar 
characteristic  of  the  student's  dog  that  he  drinks  beer.  Once 
used  to  it,  it  becomes  his  greatest  enjoyment  to  empty  a  few 
choppins,  and  he  seems  not  at  all  to  dislike  the  phantasies  of 
a  half-fuddled  state.  To  him  by  no  means  applies  what  Voigt 
has  added  to  Linnaeus's  characteristic  of  the  dog — "  he  draws 
himself  back  at  the  sight  of  a  glass." 


The  son  of  the  Muses  can  as  little  be  without  his  pipe  as  his 
dog.  The  enjoyment  which  it  affords  him,  is  at  once  single 
and  manifold.  It  embellishes  his  pleasures,  it  comforts  him  in 
trouble,  it  warms  -him  in  the  cold,  it  cools  him  in  the  heat  of 
summer.  Should  ennui  seize  him,  he  fills  his  pipe,  turns  to  his 
study,  and  what  a  fulness  of  thought  comes  over  him  as  he 
gazes  into  the  clouds  of  smoke,  which,  curling  up  from  his 
mouth,  shape  themselves  into  mysterious  forms !  There  lies  in 


180  PRIVATE  LIFE  OF 

it  a  power  of  inexhaustible  reproduction.  And  how  shall  his 
wine  and  his  beer  smack  without  his  pipe  1  In  short,  it  is  a 
discovery  which  wonderfully  unites  in  itself  all  opposite  quali- 
ties. With  all  the  parts  and  attributes  thereunto  belonging,  it 
constitutes,  when  displayed  upon  his  walls,  his  room  an  ar- 
moury, which  the  tender  hands  of  the  ladies  do  not  even 
disdain  to  embellish. 

Of  the  continued  changes  which  pipes  in  the  course  of  time 
undergo  in  their  fashion  and  construction,  many  cabinets  would 
convince  us,  did  they  only  contain  a  collection  of  ten  years' 
duration.  We  have  no  intention  to  weary  the  reader  with  the 
description  of  such  a  cabinet ;  but  he  will  allow  us  to  state  of 
what  members  a  modern  pipe  consists,  and  what  is  necessary 
to  its  complete  use  and  enjoyment. 

The  essential  portions  of  a  pipe  are  the  mouth-piece,  the 
tube,  the  wrater-sack,  and  the  head.  The  two  last  pieces  are 
united  in  the  meerschaum  and  the  clay-pipe  into  one.  The 
mouth-piece,  at  the  upper  part,  is  wrought  out  of  horn.  It  is 
made  thicker  or  thinner,  longer  or  shorter,  with  a  greater  or 
less  bore,  as  it  may  be  required.  The  long  mouth-pieces, 
having  various  partitions,  or  members,  as  they  are  called,  are 
so  finely  wrought  that  they  are  quite  elastic,  and  are  sold  at  a 
proportionate  price.  The  mouth-piece  is  commonly  united  to 
the  tube  by  an  elastic  portion  called  a  Schlauch,  which  is  con- 
structed of  elastic  wire  and  silk.  If  the  pipe  is  intended  to  be  a 
very  handsome  one,  there  is  still  another  piece  interposed  be- 
tween the  schlauch  and  the  tube,  which  is  made  of  roe's-horn, 
and  styled  the  roe-crown.  The  tube  itself  is  manufactured  from 
various  materials;  the  coarser  ones  out  of  juniper- wood,  or 
cherry-tree,  the  finer  ones  out  of  beech  and  ebony;  but  that 
which  is  most  highly  valued,  on  account  of  its  durability  and 
agreeable  odour,  is  the  Turkish  weichsel,  or  agriot,  a  kind  of 
wild  cherry.  The  tubes  are,  again,  of  different  lengths  and 
thickness,  from  a  span  in  length  to  some  yards.  The  Turkish 
pipes  are  the  longest. 

To  the  tube  is  generally  affixed  the  water-sack,  called  also 
by  the  northern  Germans  the  sponge-box ;  a  little  reservoir,  of 


THE  STUDENT.  jgl 

wedgewood  or  porcelain.     For  elegant  pipes  still  more  beau- 
tiful, but  less  useful  ones,  are  made  of  horn. 

The  pipe-head  is,  however,  the  part  on  which  the  most  cost, 
art,  and  ornament  are  bestowed.  The  lower  part  of  it,  which, 
tapering  away,  is  fitted  into  the  water-sack,  is  called  the  boot. 
The  head  is  adorned  "with  a  variety  of  paintings  and  inscrip- 
tions. We  see  upon  them,  as  upon  snuff-boxes,  many  humo- 
rous occurrences  perpetuated.  They  are  enriched  with  the 
portraits  of  handsome  women  and  celebrated  men,  and  the 
painting  is  sometimes  so  beautiful  as  to  raise  their  price  to 
several  Louisdore  each.  The  students  are  accustomed  to  com- 
pliment each  other  with  presents  of  pipe-heads,  ornamented 
with  their  coats  of  arms,  and  a  dedication  on  the  reverse  side. 

All  the  various  sections  of  the  pipe  are  so  fitted  to  each  other 
that  you  can  readily  separate  them,  in-  order  to  clean  them ;  but 
they  are  prevented  from  separating  when  in  use,  by  silk  cords 
which  pass  through  small  metallic  rings,  and  are  secured  at 
top  and  bottom.  These  cords  serve  also  to  hang  them  up  by. 
On  the  pipes  of  the  Chore-Burschen  the  cords  proceeding  from 
the  head  to  the  mouth-piece,  are  not  only  secured  but  con- 
tinued, and  hanging  down  at  liberty,  bear  the  coloured  Chore- 
tassels. 

The  student  uses  in  the  course  of  the  day,  different  pipes. 
In  the  morning  he  gladly  smokes  out  of  a  Turkish  pipe,  if  such 
a  one  is  at  his  command.  This  has  a  small  mouth-piece,  a 
long  tube,  and  a  meerschaum  head,  which  gives  it  its  greater 
value.  It  is  on  this  account  so  highly  esteemed ;  the  student 
asserting  that  no  pipe  smokes  so  pleasantly ;  but  its  price,  if  it 
be  genuine,  varies  from  two  to  six,  or  more,  Louisdores.  The 
material  out  of  which  the  real  meerschaum  head  is  made,  is 
dug  in  Spain,  Portugal,  and  the  ancient  Thebes,  and  consists  of 
a  silicious  clay,  in  chemical  combination  with  water.  The 
other  heads  are  made  of  various  materials,  and  the  most  usual 
are  of  porcelain  or  wedgewood. 

The  meerschaum,  called  by  the  Turks  (Myrsen,  Keffekil), 
the  material  out  of  which  the  ancient  Samian  vessels  were 
made,  is  yet  used  in  Turkey  for  the  manufacture  of  pipe-heads ; 

16 


]82  PRIVATE  LIFE  OF 

of  which  only  the  smaller  kinds  are  allowed  to  be  exported.  It 
is  chiefly  dug  in  ancient  Thebes,  and  is  by  no  means  employed 
in  its  crude  state,  but  undergoes  a  manipulation,  similar  to  that 
of  the  porcelain  paste.  It  is  exposed  to  a  certain  process  of 
fermentation;  the  softened  mass  is  diluted  and  washed,  then 
half  dried,  pressed  in  moulds,  and  bored  whilst  in  them.  The 
heads  thus  formed  are  then  dried  in  the  shade,  and  afterwards 
hard  burnt  in  the  furnace.  After  this  they  are  boiled  in  milk, 
then  in  linseed  oil  or  wax,  and  finally  polished  with  Dutch  rush 
(equisetum)  and  leather.  The  finest  formed  heads — washed 
ware — may  not  be  exported,  although  the  Turks  on  the  whole 
prefer  the  heads  made  from  burnt  Bole.  As  the  Turkish  heads 
are  not  considered  handsome  in  shape,  and  have  too  narrow  a 
bore,  they  are  again  turned  and  rebored  at  Ruhla  in  the  district 
of  Gotha,  and  being  brought  to  a  more  modern  form,  are  then 
boiled  in  tallow  or  wax,  and  again  polished.  The  turnings  are 
used  in  the  preparation  of  imitation  meerschaum  heads,  which 
are  more  brittle  and  less  lasting  than  the  real  ones.  In  these 
heads  manufactured  in  Lemgo,  there  is  no  real  meerschaum 
clay  used,  but  a  mixture  of  clay,  chalk,  and  egg-shells.  These 
heads  are  heavier  and  more  frangible  than  the  genuine ;  they 
more  readily  become  rough  and  unclean,  and  take  a  metallic 
streak  from  gold  or  silver,  which  is  not  the  case  with  meer- 
schaum heads. — Leonhard's  Orylttognosie. 

A  new  pipe  requires  great  care  in  bringing  it  into  use,  till  it 
is  as  it  is  phrased,  besmoked,  or  seasoned ;  that  is,  till  the  inside 
of  the  pipe-head  is  coated  with  a  black  crust  of  finely  cemented- 
together  tobacco  dust.  Till  this  is  effected  the  pipe  has  not  a 
good  flavour,  and  it  requires  to  be  well  and  vigorously  smoked 
out.  To  promote  this  seasoning,  it  is  customary  to  smear  the 
inside  of  the  head  with  sugar-water,  before  it  is  filled  with 
tobacco.  This  seasoning  of  the  meerschaum  head  is  particu- 
larly difficult.  While  it  is  warm,  during  the  first  time  of  smok- 
ing, it  must  not  be  touched  with  the  fingers ;  it  must  be  suffered 
to  cool  slowly,  and  must  be  protected  from  being  touched  or 
rubbed  by  any  thing. 

The  long  pipes,  called  house-pipes,  serve  the  Burschen  usually 


THE  STUDENT.  183 

at  the  Kneips ;  the  very  short  one,  on  their  walks,  or  when  out 
shooting,  as  a  long  one  might  then  be  inconvenient.  That  there 
are  people  who  extravagantly  carry  their  luxury  so  far  as,  from 
year  to  year,  at  all  times  and  seasons,  to  smoke  genuine  meer- 
schaum pipes,  any  one  may,  to  his  astonishment,  read  in  Bul- 
wer's  Ernest  Maltravers. 

The  white  clay  pipes,  which  were  formerly  in  general  use, 
are  no  longer  used  by  the  student ;  but  they  may  be  daily  seen 
in  the  mouths  of  countrymen. 

Thus  we  have  put  together  a  right  noble  pipe,  and  will  now 
take  a  peep  at  the  apparatus  requisite  to  its  enjoyment.  The 
most  indispensable,  certainly,  is  tobacco.  To  lecture  on  the 
various  qualities  of  this  article,  we  want  both  patience  and 
sufficient  knowledge.  How  many  descending  steps  are  there 
between  the  finest  Knaster,  and  the  weed  which  fumes  up  rank 
andt  qualmish  from  the  pipe  of  the  wood-cutter!  The  worst 
sort  is  jocosely  called  "  three  times  round  the  body  for  a  farth- 
ing," which  may  fittingly  be  smoked  over  that  liquor  called 
"  three-men  wine,"  because  it  would  require  two  men  to  hold  a 
man  while  the  third  forced  this  Tartarian  wine  down  his  throat. 

Much  luxury  is  expended  over  that  little  ornamental  reposi- 
tory for  the  preservation  of  this  precious  commodity — the  so- 
called  tobacco-casket.  Abroad  the  student  carries  the  narcotic 
herb  with  him  in  a  tobacco-pouch,  which  is  often  ornamented 
with  embroidery  by  some  fair  hand.  The  long  and  thickly- 
piled  together  strips  of  paper  (spills),  which  are  used  to  light 
the  pipes,  are  in  Germany  known  by  the  name  of  "  Fidibus,'' 
and  its  derivation  from  "  fidelibus  patribus,"  the  jolly  monks, 
shows  that  these  good  fellows  did  not  despise  the  enjoyment  of 
tobacco,  when  they  could  in  private  breathe  its  beatifying  fumes. 

Another  yet  similar  derivation  is  the  following.  At  the  time 
when  the  students  were  forbidden  to  smoke  tobacco,  they  had 
private  smoking-companies,  where  the  host  sent  round  a  Latin 
bill  with  the  following  contents,  which  the  student  who  agreed 
to  go  to  it,  undersigned  not  with  his  real,  but  with  a  purposely 
assumed  name : 


184  PRIVATE  LIFE  OF 

Fid.     Ibus. 

S.  D.        N.  H. 

Hodie  hora  vii.  a.  v.  s. 

That  is,  Fidelibus  fratribus  salutem  dicit  N.  hospes.  Hodie  hora 
septima  (apparebit  in  museo  meo,  herba  Nicotiana)  abunde  vobis 
satisfaciam.  As  soon  as  they  all  were  assembled,  they  placed 
themselves  in  a  circle,  and  each  lit  his  pipe  with  his  bill,  as  a 
Fid....ibus  offering — whence  arose  the  term  Fidibus. 

The  inconsumable  Fidibus  is  a  new  invention  with  which  our 
English  friend,  Mr.  Traveller,  was  struck  in  the  lodging  of 
Freisleben,  and  in  his  notes  thereon  very  graphically  described. 

When  we  have  smoked  a  while,  it  is  necessary  to  press 
together  the  mass  which  has  expanded  itself  proudly  in  the 
pipe  head,  and  for  this  purpose  is  used  a  sort  of  stamper,  or 
stopper,  also  furnished  with  a  knob  of  wood.  This  instrument 
has  received  a  variety  of  names.  In  Heidelberg  it  is  called 
Dentsch, — a  name  coined  for  the  cogent  reason  that  it  will 
rhyme  with  mensch,  without  which  the  poet  would  find  himself 
in  what  the  Americans  call,  an  "  eternal  fix."  Another  name 
is  Melibocus,  after  the  mountain  on  the  Bergstrasse.  In  this 
instrument  there  is  generally  contained  a  wire,  which  you  can 
draw  out  in  order  to  give  air  to  the  clogged  up  part  of  your 
pipe.  It  is  thus  at  once  a  stopper  and  an  opener. 

The  process  of  smoking  is  a  species  of  distillation,  whereby 
the  water-sack,  as  a  receiver,  takes  off  the  fluid  product,  while 
the  fume  passes  into  the  still-head,  and  is  thence  conveyed  to 
the  mouth,  where  it  achieves  its  narcotic  purposes,  and  thence 
is  again  discharged  into  the  air.  It  is  to  be  expected  that  this 
chemical  apparatus  will  from  time  to  time  require  cleaning ; 
and  for  this  end  is  used  a  small  feather  for  the  shorter  tubes, 
and  for  the  longer  ones  the  fine  clear  stalk  of  a  peculiarly  tall 
and  strong  kind  of  grass  (Luzula  maxima)  which  grows  in  the 
woods.  Some  poor  imp,  unfit  for  other  work,  undertakes  to 
furnish  the  smoker  with  this  necessary  article,  and  those  who 
gather  them  in  the  woody  hills  round  Heidelberg,  even  extend 
their  trade  in  them  as  far  as  Mannheim  and  Karlsruhe.  When 


THE  STUDENT.  185 

the  stranger  mounts  up  to  the  ruins  of  Heidelberg  castle,  he  is 
often  accosted  by  this  Binsen-Bube  or  Blumen-Bube,  Rush-boy 
or  Flower-boy,  as  he  is  called,  who,  with  most  graceful  obei- 
sances, presents  him  with  a  small  nosegay,  and  patiently  waits 
for  a  substantial  token  of  its  acceptance.  This  is  the  great 
gatherer  and  furnisher  of  the  Binsen,  or  rush,  as  it  is  unbotani- 
cally  called,  for  the  fumiferous  public. 

The  cigar,  which  we  must  not  forget,  is  much  less  affected 
by  the  student.  Yet  he  sometimes  prefers  it  to  a  pipe,  over  a 
cup  of  coffee ;  and  then  is  he  accustomed,  with  great  satisfac- 
tion, to  drive  forth  the  smoke  through  his  nostrils,  in  order  to 
make  himself  thoroughly  conscious  of  his  luxury. 

If  the  reader  has  held  out  actually  to  the  end  of  this  disser- 
tation on  smoking,  then  we  are  very  certain  that  the  general 
and  determined  smoking  in  Germany  has  arrested  his  attention. 
We  do  not  pretend  to  offer  a  reason  for  the  remarkable  growth 
of  the  practice  of  smoking  amongst  us  during  the  last  ten  or 
twenty  years.  It  seems  to  us  somewhat  far-fetched  to  assign 
as  the  cause,  as  has  been  done  by  a  learned  German  writer, 
that  it  is  a  natural  necessity  to  dull  and  modify  to  a  healthful 
degree  the  all  too  dominant  nervous  sensibility  and  imaginative 
susceptibility  of  the  over-refined,  and  especially  of  the  learned^ 
man. 

We  may  remark,  in  conclusion,  that,  amongst  the  students, 
snuff-taking  is  much  less  common  than  smoking :  and,  having 
thus  sufficiently  described,  to  our  fancy,  the  two  most  constant 
companions  of  the  Son  of  the  Muses,  his  dog  and  his  pipe,  we 
may  now,  without  further  care,  leave  him  to  follow  his  labours 
and  amusements  in  such  good  company. 


16* 


CHAPTER  X. 


RURAL  AND  SUMMER  AMUSEMENTS  OP  THE  STUDENTS. 

THE  natural  beauties  of  Heidelberg  are  well  known  abroad. 
Who  is  he  who  has  looked  upon  its  picturesque  environs  with 
a  healthful  mind,  and  has  not  been  enraptured  with  them  ? 
Therefore,  the  son  of  the  Muses,  who  is  here  passing  his 
student  years,  eagerly  hastens  out  in  the  lovely  days  of  summer 
into  the  free  regions  of  nature  that  lie  around.  The  walks  in 
the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  city  are  diligently  trodden  by 
him.  Above  all,  the  castle  enjoys  the  frequent  visits  of  the 
student  youth  in  thronging  numbers.  The  student  is  to  be  met 
here  every  hour  of  the  day,  but  he  still  more  loves  to  survey 
here  the  beauties  of  a  moonlight  night.  Leaning  over  the 
terrace,  he  looks  down  upon  the  city  as  it  lies  in  its  solemn 
silence  stretched  along  the  bank  of  the  Neckar.  Its  inhabitants, 
with  all  their  troubles  and  pleasures, — his  companions,  with  all 
the  pursuits  and  passions  of  restless  youth,  are  hushed  into 
deep  slumber.  He  only  wakes,  but  the  hours  which  he  steals 
from  sleep  are  not  lost.  He  glances  wide  over  the  plain  of  the 
Pfalz,  which,  illuminated  by  the  moon's  uncertain  light,  offers 
to  the  eye  no  longer  its  boundary  of  hills.  Opposite  to  him, 
the  castle  rears  its  gigantic  pile,  and  varying  its  outlines  with 
every  change  of  the  moonlight,  challenges  the  imagination  to 
equal  its  bold  features  in  its  highest  flights.  The  moon  now 
advances  from  behind  some  envious  cloud,  and  the  windows  of 


SUMMER  AMUSEMENTS.  187 

the  palace  of  Otto  Heinrich  appear  magically  lit  up,  and  it 
seems  again  to  stand  in  all  the  splendour  of  past  ages.  But 
the  solitary  watcher  has  unconsciously  wandered  forward  till 
he  finds  himself  standing  close  to  the  spot  where  Matthieson 
sung  his  elegy.  Suddenly  all  falls  back  into  shade,  and  before 
him  stands  a  sublime  image  of  the  wrath  and  passions  of  man 
— the  rifted  tower — one  part  blown  up  and  hurled,  in  one 
mighty  mass,  into  the  moat.  In  the  vaulted  chambers  of  the 
yet  standing  portion,  the  mysterious  forms  of  heroes  long  gone 
down  to  the  dust,  seem  to  erect  themselves,  and  to  cry  wo 
over  the  desolating  fury  of  the  French.  The  wanderer  feels  a 
momentary  shiver  pass  through  him — but  he  glances  up  to 
heaven,  which  expands  above  him  in  its  glorious  clearness — 
an  image  of  divine  peace  and  rest;  the  owl,  with  its  dismal 
shout  of  joy,  brings  him  back  from  his  dreams,  and  in  silence 
he  descends  to  the  silent  city. 

How  sweet  'tis  in  the  air  ! 
No  hateful  tyrant  there 

Scathes  Nature's  fair  reign. 
No  base  adulator, 
No  slanderous  traitor, 

Empoisons  the  plain. 

Salts. 

The  cool  shades  of  the  Wolfsbrunnen  afford  the  student  a 
delicious  retreat  in  the  heat  of  a  summer's  day;  and  many 
another  spot  of  the  vicinity  are  sought  by  him  with  equal 
delight,  which  have  been  already  often  sketched  and  de- 
scribed. 

This  is  not  the  place  to  attempt  it,  and  were  it,  we  should 
despair  of  saying  any  thing  more  on  the  natural  beauties  of 
Heidelberg ;  but  we  cannot  resist  quoting  a  few  passages 
from  a  very  popular  article  on  Heidelberg  in  the  Halle  Year- 
Book. 

After  the  author  has  described  the  view  from  the  balcony  of 
the  castle,  he  says,  "  While  in  the  youthful  mind  the  sentiment 
of  an  infinite  fulness  of  life  springs  up  from  those  rich  and 


188  RURAL  AND 

wide  prospects,  the  stiller  and  more  secret  charms  of  the 
environs  of  Heidelberg  allure  it  to  thoughtful  and  more  intimate 
observations  of  nature.  The  dark  shadowy  paths  of  the  castle 
gardens  invite  to  solitary  walks.  Every  where  on  all  hands 
hidden  glens  lead  away  into  the  mountains,  and  winding  path- 
ways provoke  to  farther  advances,  and  conduct  to  continually 
fresh  discoveries  of  charming  valleys  and  woods,  new  views  in 
the  distance,  and  more  romantic  places  of  repose.  At  one 
place  we  quit  the  view  of  the  ruin  and  the  plain,  where  serene 
but  busy  life  displays  itself;  a  few  steps  forward,  and  the  most 
profound  solitude  receives  us ;  instead  of  the  laughing  fields 
and  sloping  vineyards,  solemn  thick  beech  woods,  in  which  for 
hours  we  meet  no  trace  of  human  existence,  engulf  us.  We 
bury  ourselves  in  the  depths  of  the  Odenwald — then  suddenly 
we  stand  on  the  airy  peak  of  the  mountain,  or  a  wide  ravine 
rends  itself  out  of  the  hill-side  before  us,  and  there  again  lies  in 
our  view  the  whole  magnificence  of  the  Rhine-plain  at  our 
feet !  We  see  in  the  distance  the  ancient  Worms,  and  the 
towers  of  Speir,  and  of  Trifells,  where  King  Richard  sate  in 
captivity ;  and  yonder  the  ruins  of  the  castle  of  Hambach  ; 
and  in  this  one  glance  comes  before  us  a  vast  fragment  of 
history — the  Niebelungen  Lied,  and  the  old  holy  Roman  Em- 
pire, with  its  secular  and  spiritual  Electors  and  Princes  under 
the  Emperor,  and  Luther  before  the  Diet.  And  then  sweep 
before  us  the  Crusades ;  and  then  again  the  times  in  which  the 
wild  troops  of  Turenne  came  hither  from  behind  that  Rhine- 
stream,  the  French  soldiers  playing  at  ball,  as  they  came,  in 
the  Dome  of  Speir,  with  the  skulls  of  German  kings ;  and 
finally,  the  latest  scenes  of  the  past,  when  upon  that  castle  of 
Hambach  the  German  and  the  French  tricolour  flapped  on  the 
same  standard  staff.  And  these  histories  which  we  have  lived 
over  again  in  this  one  view,  are  not  yet  dead  and  worn  out, 
but  still  plant  themselves  in  the  very  heart  of  the  present,  and 
intertwine  themselves  beneath  our  feet  there,  in  many  an  intri- 
cate winding.  A  network  of  boundaries  lies  before  us  ;  every 
fresh  glance  falls  on  a  fresh  territory — upon  a  different  race 
of  the  German  people.  There,  towards  the  south,  the  ancient 


SUMMER  AMUSEMENTS.  189 

Swabia  shadows  itself  forth ;  here,  northward,  Hesse  divides 
itself  from  the  Pfalz ;  there,  beyond  the  river,  contends  the 
active  French  spirit  against  the  strict  old  Bavarian  discipline, 
and  nourishes  itself  with  its  beloved  traditions  and  daring  hopes. 
Still  farther  off  can  we  look  into  this  very  France  itself,  which 
for  centuries  has  been  so  fatally  disastrous  to  us.  Those 
steam-vessels  which  cover  the  Rhine,  and  bear  in  them  tra- 
vellers of  all  nations,  are  ready  to  convey  us  upward  to  the 
foot  of  the  Alps,  or  downward  to  the  sea ;  and  the  busy  and 
restless  traffic,  which  moving  between  these  points  daily  rushes 
to  and  fro,  past  us,  there  presses  itself  into  the  very  centre  of 
our  field  of  vision." 

The  reader  must  pardon  us  that  we  have  permitted  ourselves 
to  be  seduced  by  the  charms  of  nature  to  inweave  here  what 
might  perhaps  have  found  a  place  in  one  of  the  last  chapters ; 
where  .indeed  we  propose  to  consider  what  influence  the  student 
life  has  on  the  spirit  and  mind  of  the  pupil  of  Minerva.  He 
will  allow  us  now  to  return  to  our  present  subject. 

The  more  distant  places  the  student  seeks  by  means  of  a 
horse  or  carriage.  The  riding  horses  for  hire  are  truly,  for 
the  most  part,  wretched  jades.  Even  the  means  which  the 
Renommist  of  Zachariae  used  would  prove  unavailing  here; 
and  what  he  thus  describes,  on  such  Rosinantes  as  these  could 
not  come  to  pass. 

A  spur-stroke  and  a  curse  gave  wings  unto  his  horse. 

The  crack  of  ponderous  whip,  and  rib-thumps,  sans  remorse, 

Sent  him  all  foaming  on,  till  almost,  in  a  minute, 

The  country  lay  behind  him,  the  next,  he  was  not  in  it. 

A  peculiar  class  of  equipages  are  let  out  in  the  university  cities, 
and  are  hired  by  the  student  partly  on  account  of  their  cheap- 
ness, but  more  especially,  because  he  can  charioteer  himself.  He 
styles  these  little  chaises  with  one  horse,  a  one-span,  or  one- 
engine.  With  one  of  these  he  undertakes  journeys  which, 
especially  on  Sundays,  stretch  themselves  as  far  as  Mannheim,  to 
the  Hardt  mountains,  to  the  Melibocus,  or  even  to  Karlsruhe 


190  RURAL  AND 

and  Baden-Baden.  The  persecuted  horse  who  drags  these 
vehicles,  knows  the  way  from  Mannheim  and  other  places, 
much  better  than  his  temporary  master ;  and  when  in  dark 
nights  a  one-engine  goes  wrong  or  comes  to  any  accident  it  is 
for  the  most  part  because  his  driver  will  not  let  him  have  his 
own  way.  Many  a  time  the  poor  beasts  are  so  weary  that  the 
student  can  no  longer  urge  them  forward  with  the  whip,  and  is 
obliged  to  have  recourse  to  stones  that  he  picks  from  the  road. 
Water  excursions  are  seldom  undertaken,  because  the  ill- 
constructed  pleasure-boats  do  not  allow  him  to  guide  them  him- 
self. The  neighbourhood  of  so  many  beautiful  countries  incites 
the  student  to  more  extensive  excursions,  and  he  travels  during 
the  vacations,  into  Switzerland,  the  Rhine  country,  and  other 
places,  chiefly  in  company  of  a  few  friends.  We  may  suppose 
it  to  be  on  some  incident  connected  with  one  of  these  excur- 
sions that  Uhland  has  founded  his  beautiful  ballad  of 


THE  WIRTHIN'S  DAUGHTER, 

Three  students  crossed  over  the  Rhine-stream  one  day, 
'Twas  to  a  Frau  Wirthin's  they  wended  their  way. 

"  Frau  Wirthin,  hast  thou  good  beer  and  wine, 
And  where  is  that  lovely  daughter  of  thine  ]" 

"  My  beer  and  wine  are  fresh  and  clear ; 
My  dear  daughter  lies  upon  the  death-bier !" 

And  as  they  stepped  to  the  innermost  room, 
There  she  was  lying  robed  for  the  tomb. 

The  first  he  withdrew  then  the  veiling  screen, 
And  gazed  upon  her  with  sorrowful  mien : 

"  Ah,  wert  thou  living,  fair  flower  of  earth, 
How  should  I  love  thee  from  this  day  forth !" 

The  second  he  covered  the  pale,  dead  face, 
And  turn'd  him  round  and  wept  apace : 

"  Ah,  there  thou  art  lying  on  thy  death-bier, 
And  how  have  I  loved  thee  for  many  a  year !" 


SUMMER  AMUSEMENTS.  191 

The  third  he  lifted  once  more  the  veil, 
And  kissed  her  upon  the  lips  so  pale : 

"  Thee  I  loved  ever !  yet  love  thee  to-day ! 
And  still  shall  I  love  thee  for  aye  and  for  aye  !" 

That  the  student  is  not  totally  debarred  from  field-sports 
either,  the  number  of  game  dogs  that  he  keeps  sufficiently  testify. 
A  tract  of  land  lying  along  the  Neckar,  between  Handschuh- 
sheim  and  Dossenheim,  is  assigned  to  him  as  his  sporting  ground  ; 
yet  he  is  forbidden  by  the  law,  to  take  any  game-dog  thither 
with  him.  This  is  probably  to  prevent  damage  to  the  autumnal 
and  winter  crops  of  the  peasants;  which  would  otherwise  be 
sorely  overrun  by  men  and  dogs.  This  regulation,  and  the  high 
cultivation  of  this  tract,  are  the  cause  that  the  solitary  student, 
wandering  thither  with  his  gun,  thinks  himself  lucky  if  he  returns 
home  with  an  odd  hare  or  partridge.  But  he  has  also  frequent 
admittance  to  other  hunting-grounds  which  lie  in  the  farms  of 
different  citizens.  The  amusement  of  fishing  does  not  appear 
so  very  attractive  to  the  German  as  to  the  Englishman,  and  one 
seldom  now  sees  an  isolated  son  of  the  Muses,  who  patiently 
watches  the  line  which  is  thrown  into  the  Neckar-stream,  till 
a  little  fish  befools  itself  with  the  bait.  The  student  loves  not 
that  sort  of  fishing,  which  according  to  his  German  notion,  seems 
at  once  a  phlegmatic  and  tedious  business ;  and  there  is  a  cari- 
cature of  an  Englishman  made  by  the  students,  which  represents 
him  as  sitting  patiently  watching  his  float  so  long,  that  a  spider 
had  spun  his  web  in  the  angle  of  the  rod  and  line,  and  had 
already  caught  several  flies  there  before  the  fisherman  had 
hooked  a  single  fin. 

Before  we  quit  the  summer  pleasures  of  the  student,  we  must 
say  a  few  words  on  the  Kirchweihs — wakes.  The  reader 
must  not  alarm  himself  with  the  fear  that  we  are  going  to  bore 
him  with  an  essay  on  church  solemnities — we  allude  only  to 
those  popular  festivities  with  which  the  anniversary  of  the 
dedication  of  a  church  is  celebrated.  As  is  often  the  case,  this 
feast  has  lost  its  original  intention ;  scarcely  any  one  thinks  of 
the  meaning  of  the  word,  which  in  the  mouth  of  the  ordinary 


192  RURAL  AND 

people  is  corrupted  to  Kerve.  Every  little  nest,  much  too  poor 
for  the  possession  of  a  church,  yes,  many  an  individual  public 
house,  even,  has  its  particular  Kirchweih.  By  what  authority 
it  has  usurped  this  name  and  holiday,  nobody  troubles  himself 
to  inquire.  People  are  quite  contented  that,  through  these 
Kirchweihen,  of  which  one  or  more  fall  out  within  their  reach 
every  Sunday  during  the  summer,  they  find  occasion  to  dance, 
drink,  and  sing.  From  every  city  gate  then  presses  forth  a 
motley  group ;  the  worthy  burger,  the  Handwerksbursche,  the 
alert  young  dressmaker,  the  homely  housemaid,  all  are  crowd- 
ing forward  in  a  promiscuous  throng.  Amongst  them  one 
descries  companies  of  a  higher  grade,  which  rejoice  themselves 
in  the  splendid  summer's  day. 

So  gladly  each  suns  himself  to-day  ! 

****** 
Out  of  low  houses,  with  damp,  dull  rooms  ; 
Out  of  the  bonds  of  labour  and  trade ; 
Out  of  the  crush  of  the  narrow  alleys ; 
Out  of  the  church's  reverent  night, — 
They  all  are  brought  forth  into  the  light. 
See  !  only  see !  how  nimbly  sallies 
The  multitude,  scattering  through  garden  and  field ; 
How  it  gaily  again  on  the  broad  flood  rallies, 
Alive  with  all  joys  that  boats  can  yield. 

Who  has  not  called  to  mind  these  lines  of  the  great  master, 
when  he  has  looked  on  the  stream  of  the  popular  throng  that 
has  swept  on  towards  one  of  the  resorts  of  holiday  pleasures. 
In  the  midst  of  this  tumult  the  students  are  also  to  be  seen 
following  the  current  of  the  great  stream  in  smaller  or  greater 
companies.  If  in  modern  times  the  singular  attire  less  distin- 
guishes him  from  the  crowd,  yet  the  practised  eye  readily 
singles  out  the  student  from  the  Handwerksbursche  and  the 
shop  assistant.  On  the  countenance  of  the  Handworker  we 
see  displayed  the  joy  which  he  feels  to  find  himself  once  more 
for  a  day  able  to  flee  from  the  dusty  workship,  and  the  pride  of 
showing  himself  in  his  Sunday  bravery,  in  the  astonished  eyes, 
as  he  believes,  of  the  world.  This  holiday  array  he  has  truly 


SUMMER  AMUSEMENTS.  193 

often  thrown  upon  his  back  in  a  queer  enough  style.  In  black 
frock  coat,  white  trousers,  high  cravat,  and  glittering  boots, 
stalks  he  clumsily  along,  and  his  rude  taste  extends  itself  to  the 
very  pipe  which  he  carries  in  his  hand.  On  the  contrary, 
the  Pendulum  has  clad  himself  after  the  newest  French 
fashion.  All  is  smoothed  and  polished  off  to  a  nicety.  He 
looks  like  a  dish  that  the  hungry  Nero  has  licked  into  the  most 
elegant  cleanness.  Scarcely  dare  he  turn  himself  in  his  beau- 
tiful clothes  lest  he  should  crumple  the  ornate  and  artistical 
knot  of  his  neckcloth ;  lest  he  should  derange  the  nice  tornure 
of  his  locks.  He  wheels  himself  aside  only  to  see  whether  the 
admiring  gaze  of  the  fair  sex  is  not  following  him.  "  Nothig" 
would  the  student  say — that  is,  "  it  would  be  well  for  him  if 
it  did !" 

The  student  disdains,  Knoten-like,  to  beautify  himself  on  a 
Sunday.  One  day  is  like  another  to  him ;  he  can  devote  it 
either  to  study  or  to  pleasure.  So,  as  on  other  days,  he 
lounges  carelessly  along.  His  attire  is  not  studied,  but  it  is 
convenient;  and  according  to  individual  taste,  more  or  less 
excellently  chosen.  A  short  frock-coat,  often  of  a  peculiar  cut, 
and  the  little  cap,  are  all  that  distinguish  him.  Formerly, 
indeed,  the  costume,  one  entire  singularity,  and  the  coloured 
Chore-ribbands,  the  variegated  cap,  and  the  tri-colour  of  the 
Burschenschaft,  were  worn  openly.  But  in  spite  of  all  this, 
nothing  is  so  easy  as  to  recognise  the  student  by  his  free  and 
self-possessed  carriage.  Saucily,  often  haughtily,  he  observes 
the  groups  of  onward-pouring  people,  without  turning  a  step 
out  of  his  track ;  careless  whether  he  be  an  object  of  notice, 
being  only  too  secure  that  he  is.  So  leaves  he  the  city  Besom 
to  the  Handwerksbursche,  nodding,  however,  a  passing  greeting 
to  this  and  the  other  as  they  go  by,  assured  that,  arrived  at  the 
dancing  place,  they  will  speedily  forsake  the  Knoten  to  fly  to 
the  arms  of  the  more  favoured  dancer. 

I  catch  the  hamlet's  stir  and  cheer, 
The  people's  genuine  heaven  is  here ! 
Here  great  and  small  shout  glad  and  free, 
Here  I'm  a  man — here  may  one  be ! 
17 


194  RURAL  AND 

The  Kirchweihs  which  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Heidelberg 
are  the  most  noted,  are  those  of  Neckarsteinach  and  Kirscheim. 
Thither,  some  years  ago,  some  of  the  most  conspicuous  burger 
families  were  accustomed  to  make  an  annual  rustic  pilgrimage 
of  pleasure.  This  glory  is  gone  by ;  yet  we  would  recommend 
the  latter  still  as  the  best  place  in  which  for  the  stranger  to 
witness  this  folks'-feast,  if  so  we  may  term  it.  We  follow  the 
sound  of  obstreperous  music,  and  enter  a  garden,  where  a  mot- 
ley multitude  presents  itself  to  our  sight.  All  the  tables  are 
filled ;  people  eat  and  drink,  chatter  and  smoke,  laugh  and  sing, 
all  in  one  chaos  of  merry  confusion.  Hither  and  thither,  where 
an  impatient  guest  thumps  vigorously  on  the  table  with  his 
glass,  run  the  waiters — in  the  student's  tongue,  Faxe.  At  one 
table  an  honest  burger  company  has  planted  itself,  and  over  a 
glass  of  wine,  weigh  seriously  whether  the  European  balance 
of  power  can  be  maintained,  and  criticise  the  government  of 
the  city. 

No,  no,  I  like  him  not ;  our  span-new  burgermaster, 
As  he's  so  bold  already,  he'll  come  it  thick  and  faster. 
And  for  the  town,  what  doth  he,  pray  1 
Gets  it  not  worse  then  every  day ! 

Certain  youngsters  have  seated  themselves  beside  them  in  a 
state  of  considerable  perplexity,  whether  they  shall  be  held  fast 
by  the  wise  conversation  of  these  elders,  or  shall  follow  the 
bewitching  sounds  of  youthful  merriment. 

At  the  next  table,  a  knot  of  Bauers  carry  on  a  zealous  dis- 
course, of  which  one  catches  these  syllables  in  passing, — "  Oney 
think  o'that,  now ;  that  the  thing  can  run  so  wi'out  bosses.  It's 
got  the  divil  in't's  body,  an'  that  the  outlandish  folk  have  fun' 
out  again !"  It  is  the  railroads  that  have  thrown  the  fat  farmers 
into  such  a  heat,  and  they  raise  themselves  into  such  a  fidget 
with  talking  of  the  steam-engines,  that  they  blow  as  much 
smoke  out  of  their  earthen  pipes,  called  by  the  students  earthly 
pipes,  as  the  engines  themselves  can  send  out  steam. 

But  at  another  table  we  behold  the  dear  image  of  youth. 
The  ,Handwerksbursch,  who  treats  his  maiden  with  wine  and 


SUMMER  AMUSEMENTS.  195 

cakes ;  the  school  youth  who  is  there  playing  off  the  bursche 
before  them,  but  looks  round,  ever  and  anon,  lest  the  original 
that  he  is  counterfeiting  be  near,  or  his  teacher,  who  walking 
this  way  might  reprove  his  presumption;  the  fresh  country 
maiden,  and  the  gay  damsel  of  the  city,  all  desire  to  make 
themselves  amiable,  and  seek  by  their  tittering  and  laughter,  to 
let  every  one  observe  that  they  are  capitally  entertained  by 
their  swains. 

One  table  is  occupied  by  the  students,  who,  revelling  in  a 
rich  repast,  now  look  up  at  the  beauty  of  the  Neckar-Thal,  and 
now  mix  themselves  in  the  throng,  whispering  with  this  and 
that  maiden,  to  whom  their  shepherds  cast  frowns  like  thunder- 
clouds. But  careless  of  this,  the  sons  of  the  Muses  conduct 
them  forward  to  the  dancing-floor : 

*  And  all  already  dance  like  mad — 

Juchhe !  Juchhe ! 
Juchheisa !  Heisa !  Ha ! 
So  goes  the  fiddle-bow. 

Faster  and  faster  goes  the  music,  and  ever  madder  whirls 
the  waltz.  In  complete  equality  and  freedom  seem  here  the 
most  opposite  elements  to  be  mingled.  The  atmosphere  is 
already  smothering  hot,  and  clouds  of  dust  fly  up.  But  that 
matters  not.  He  that  finds  it  too  hot  flings  off  his  coat,  and 
dances  in  his  shirt  sleeves ;  he  that  does  not  find  the  music  keep 
time,  helps  it  with  the  stamping  of  his  foot.  All  seems  totally 
happy — all  unity.  But  the  wine  has,  meantime,  heated  their 
heads,  and  suddenly  in  one  corner  of  the  hall  rises  a  terrible 
hubbub.  The  strife  has  arisen  about  that  maiden  who,  there 
weeping,  endeavours  to  part  the  combatants.  "  What  would 
the  silly  Knoten?"  cries  a  student.  Then  springs  wrathfully 
forth  a  brisk  tailor.  "  What  be  we  ?  Knoten  be  we  ?  dirt  be 
we?  Who  says  that,  is  an  ass,  and  I  say  it !"  A  swarm  of 
students  that  have  rushed  into  the  saloon  raise  a  burst  of  hearty 
laughter.  Then  blazes  the  wrath  of  the  Handwerksburschen ; 
"  Brother  Hamburger !  brother  Leipsicer !"  they  cry.  Numbers 


196  RURAL  AND 

of  them  rush  together,  and  strike  with  sticks,  chair-legs,  and 
bottles,  at  the  little  knot  of  students  furiously,  who  grimly  stand 
on  their  defence. 

The  Bursche  shouts — 

"Let  each  man  arm  himself  like  me,  with  sturdy  stang, 
And  chase  unto  destruction  the  beastly  Lumpen  gang." 
'Tis  said  and  it  is  done !     Bellona  storms  on  high, 
And  the  battle  is  renewed  with  menace  and  reply. 

Zacharice's  Renommist. 

But  bravery  must  yield  to  multitudes. 

They  now  begin  to  quit  the  bloody  battle-field, 
Yet  slowly  draw  they  off,  and  scarcely  seem  to  yield ; 
And  loath  unto  the  base  their  noble  backs  to  show, 
They  whirl  their  last  club  at  them,  as  from  the  ground  they  go. 

Ibid. 

Even  the  fair  ones  have  divided  themselves  into  two  parties, 
and  one  detachment  wheels  off  with  the  overpowered  body  that 
they  may  enjoy  the  happiness  of  wandering  homewards  on  the 
arm  of  the  Bursche. 

This  burlesque  student  song  on  the  Handwerkshurschen  is 
very  descriptive  of  these  scenes : 


GOD  GREET  THEE,  BROTHER  STRAUBINGER. 

God  greet  thee,  Brother  Straubinger, 

I'am  glad  to  meet  thee  though ; 
Perhaps  it  is  unknown  to  thee, 

That  from  Heidelberg  I  go. 
The  master  and  the  mistress, 

Of  them  I  can't  complain, 
But  with  these  gents,  the  students, 

No  mortal  can  contain. 

I  lately  bought  me  in  the  fair, 
A  band,  red,  black,  and  golden, 

And  hung  my  watch  to  it,  that  there 
From  falling  't  might  be  holden. 


SUMMER  AMUSEMENTS.  197 

Fierce  as  a  horse  a  Bursch  appears, 

And  at  me  right  he  batters ; 
He  dashed  the  watch  about  my  ears, 

The  riband  tore  to  tatters.* 

And  as  I  in  the  Faulen-Beltzf 

Was  with  my  sweetheart  sitting1, 
He  nicknamed  me  a  Knotenpeltz, 

For  such  fat  Besom  fitting  J 
As  in  the  dance  I  whirled  about, 

They  'gan  to  stamp  and  rumble ; 
The  Senius  stretched  his  leg  so  out,} 

That  I  must  o'er  it  tumble. 

I'll  off  by  Zurich  unto  Berne, 

And  there  I  think  to  stay,  so ; 
And  if  my  sweetheart  false  should  turn, 

She  may  write  to  me,  and  say  so. 
I  must  be  stupid  as  an  ass, 

Or  as  three  oxen,  fully, 
If  I  should  suffer  such  a  pass 

From  this  Studeoten  bully. 

We,  in  conclusion  may  mention  among  the  summer  plea- 
sures of  the  student,  the  game  at  nine-pins,  to  which  the  son  of 
Minerva  devotes  many  an  hour.  Yet  to  describe  the  various 
kinds  of  this  game,  would  prove,  probably,  a  little  wearisome. 
The  student  uses  the  same  as  all  the  other  classes  of  people  in 
Germany,  and  which  are,  perhaps,  already  familiar  to  the  fo- 
reigner. 

*  Because  it  was  the  Burschenschafl  riband,  and  therefore  a  great  desecration 
to  be  worn  by  a  Knoten. 

t  A  well  known  Wirthshouse.        t  A  Besom  is  a  girl.        §  The  Senior. 


17* 


CHAPTER  XL 


WINTER  AMUSEMENTS  OF  THE  STUDENT. 


He  who  lives  out  of  himself,  always  does  better  than  he  who  lives  in  himself. 

Seume. 


LET  us  now  devote  a  few  pages  to  the  pleasures  of  winter. 
If  we  give  a  distinguished  place  amongst  these,  to  the  amuse- 
ments which  the  Museum,  and  many  private  circles  afford,  we 
must  at  the  same  time  admit  that  particular  circumstances  pre- 
vent the  students  to  any  great  extent  seeking  the  latter.  But  as 
these  circles  are  easy  of  access  to  the  well-bred  student  even 
without  letters  of  introduction,  if  he  is  at  the  pains  to  seek  that 
introduction  himself,  we  can  by  no  means  omit  their  mention. 
In  the  houses  of  professors  and  other  leading  families  of  the 
place,  the  student  is  hospitably  received.  Reading,  music,  social 
games,  and  the  dance,  here  furnish  an  inexhaustible  source  of 
entertainment.  Here  he  finds  an  opportunity  to  accomplish 
himself  in  social  habits,  and  by  polishing  the  rough  outside  to 
discover  that  solid  interior  which  can  best  be  strengthened  and 
perfected  by  a  union  of  active  intercourse  with  knowledge  ;  and 
who  will  deny  that  this  desirable  condition  is  alone  to  be  at- 
tained by  the  society  of  refined  and  accomplished  women  1 

With  softest  persuasion  and  gentlest  prayers, 
The  sceptre  of  manners  sweet  Woman  still  bears ; 
Extinguishes  discord,  which  ragingly  glows — 
Teaches  wild  powers  that  malignantly  fight, 
Themselves  in  her  own  lovely  form  to  unite, 
And  combines^what  in  nature  else  separately  flows. 

Schiller's  Duties  of  Women. 


WINTER  AMUSEMENTS.  199 

The  student  the  more  gladly  joins  these  circles,  as  he  is  sure 
always  to  find  some  of  his  companions  already  there,  for  the 
dance-loving  host  continually  recruits  its  members  from  the  sons 
of  Minerva.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Museum  presents  manifold 
points  of  contact  between  the  students  and  higher  classes  of  the 
inhabitants  of  the  city.  We  again  avail  ourselves  of  some  re- 
marks exactly  to  the  point,  out  of  the  Halle  Year-Book.  The 
author  of  the  article  says,  "  Heidelberg  is  only  a  city  of  mode- 
rate size,  but  it  contains  sufficient  elements  for  a  superior 
society.  In  the  next  place,  it  has  formed  itself  into  various 
small  circles,  into  which  also  the  student  of  good  disposition  and 
accordant  taste  readily  procures  admittance,  and  where  he  finds 
himself  received  with  simple  cordiality.  Most  of  the  professors, 
are  very  accessible  to  individual  students,  and  throw  in  their 
way  opportunities  for  a  more  close  literary  intimacy ;  many  of 
them  .thereby  frequently  collect  round  them  large  social  circles. 

"  In  the  next  place,  many  English  families,  which  have  taken 
up  their  abode  for  a  time  in  Heidelberg,  offer  desirable  points  of 
union  to  various  lively  social  circles  there ;  and  with  them  vie 
other  strangers,  possessors  of  estates  in  the  immediate  vicinity 
of  the  city,  amongst  which  in  this  respect  is  particularly  well 
known  the  hospitable  Stift  Neuberg.  Many  of  the  substantial 
burgers  of  Heidelberg  also  endeavour  to  furnish  those  students 
that  seek  their  acquaintance  by  letters  of  introduction,  or  other- 
wise, with  the  amenities  of  social  exhilaration  and  improvement. 
These  opportunities  for  a  worthy  enjoyment  of  life  are  accepted 
by  a  great  part  of  the  students  in  the  best  spirit,  and  to  evident 
advantage.  Walks  in  company  and  excursions  into  the  sur- 
rounding country  in  summer,  and  musical  entertainments  in 
winter,  bring  the  students  into  amalgamation  with  city  society, 
subject  their  freedom  of  thought  to  the  wholesome  restraints  of 
good  manners,  and  give  to  their  enjoyment  of  life  at  once  scope 
and  modification.  But  all  these  different  circles  find  themselves 
included  and  brought  together  into  a  comprehensive  social  unity, 
in  the  Museum.  This  establisment  founded  as  a  joint-stock 
property  by  the  inhabitants  and  professors  of  the  city,  is  of  high 
value  both  to  the  social  life  of  Heidelberg  in  general,  and  in  par- 


200  WINTER  AMUSEMENTS 

ticular  to  the  student  world.  For  a  moderate  yearly  subscrip- 
tion, the  student  becomes  a  member  of  this  union,  and  through 
that  a  partaker  of  its  social  pleasures ;  enjoys  the  advantage  of 
access  to  a  rich  collection  of  political,  scientific,  and  literary 
periodicals,  and  new  works ;  and  is  even  entitled  to  a  certain 
co-operation  in  the  affairs  of  the  union  ;  a  portion  of  the  ball- 
directors,  for  instance,  being  elected  from  amongst  them.  The 
spacious  and  handsome  suite  of  apartments  in  the  Museum, 
which  are  always  open  to  the  members,  give  the  most  preferable 
opportunities  to  the  students  for  having  a  common  table,  and 
for  other  social  meetings,  and  by  this  means  brings  about  a  more 
extensive  intimacy  and  acquaintance  amongst  these  young 
people.  But  especially  is  the  independent  manner  and  estima- 
tion with  which  they  see  themselves  received  in  such  a  union, 
an  incentive  to  them  to  maintain  this  position  with  urbanity  and 
moderation ;  and  the  social  equality  with  their  teachers  which 
here  prevails,  far  from  diminishing  their  respect  for  them,  serves 
only,  through  the  confidence  reposed  in  them,  to  elevate  and 
ennoble  them.  Inconceivable  is  the  auspicious  influence  of  the 
Museum  on  the  conduct  of  the  students,  and  their  good  under- 
standing with  the  professors,  and  with  the  whole  of  the  best 
society  of  the  city ;  and  the  cases  are  rare  in  which  any  one  by 
a  wanton  disturbance  of  the  general  enjoyment,  loses  sight  of 
that  discretion  which  the  company  expects  from  him.  Truly 
not  all  the  students  have  the  taste  for  these  nobler  social  plea- 
sures, which  are  offered  to  them  in  so  friendly  and  disinterested 
a  manner.  They  who  regard  the  established  rules  of  social 
manners  as  a  restraint,  incompatible  with  the  enjoyment  of  their 
academical  freedom,  seek  less  select  circles,  where  such  rules 
are  more  freely  dispensed  with.  The  society  of  the  middle 
classes  of  Heidelberg,  though  decent  and  lively,  yet  wants  that 
higher  finish  which  elevates  the  young  man,  while  it  compels  him 
to  watchfulness  over  himself.  The  student  feels  himself  above 
the  society  of  such  circles,  and,  as  only  too  frequently  happens, 
he  makes  them  feel  his  superiority  in  an  unbecoming  manner, 
making  them  the  butts  of  his  wit,  and  the  objects  of  his  wanton 
humours.  The  Heidelberg  citizens  have  had  repeated  occasion 


OF  THE  STUDENT.  201 

to  rue  this  overbearing  spirit  of  the  students,  and  they  have 
never,  and  can  never  be  able  to  establish  a  more  satisfactory 
and  secure  relationship  with  such  society." 

But  the  life  of  a  large  city  comes  near  enough  to  the  Heidel- 
berg students.  The  Mannheim  theatre  is  chiefly  filled  by  per- 
sons from  Heidelberg;  the  saloons  of  Mannheim  society,  in 
which  the  exclusiveness  of  English  high  life,  and  of  German 
aristocracy,  appear  softened  by  French  urbanity  and  South- 
German  good-nature,  are  not  impassable  to  him ;  and  the  more 
favoured  may,  in  the  little  court  of  the  widowed  Grand  Duchess 
Stephanie,  become  acquainted  with  the  fine  yet  easy  manners  of 
a  circle  distinguished  by  birth  and  accomplishment. 

Many  a  romance  weaves  itself  here  in  the  intercourse  of  the 
social  circles — in  the  crowd  of  the  ball-room ;  and  strong  chains 
of  love  often  become  fabricated,  which  conduct  the  maiden  far 
from  the  walls  of  Heidelberg,  and  teach  her  to  forget,  on  a  dis- 
tant hearth,  her  beautiful  native  home.  If  on  a  lovely  summer's 
night  we  linger  late  on  the  castle  height,  we  often,  as  we  return, 
become  the  partakers  of  the  enjoyment  of  a  serenade,  the  offer- 
ing which  a  son  of  Minerva  brings  to  show  to  his  chosen  one 
his  watchfulness.  At  a  distance  we  listen  to  a  beautiful  song, 
whose  delivery,  full  of  tenderness  and  feeling,  is  supported  by 
the  accompaniment  of  a  guitar. 


TRUE  LOVE. 

When  in  the  gloomy  midnight  deep 
My  solitary  watch  I  keep, 
I  think  on  her  I  left  behind, 
And  ask  is  she  still  true  and  kind. 

"When  I  was  forced  to  march  away, 
How  warm  a  kiss  she  gave  that  day ; 
With  ribands  bright  my  cap  she  drest, 
And  clasped  me  to  her  faithful  breast. 

She  loves  me  well,  to  me  is  kind, 
Therefore  I  keep  a  cheerful  mind : 


202  WINTER  AMUSEMENTS 

Through  coldest  nights  my  bosom  glows 
Whene'er  on  her  my  thoughts  repose. 

Now  by  the  dim  lamp's  feeble  light, 
Perchance  upon  thy  bed  to-night 
Thy  thoughts  to  thy  beloved  are  given, 
With  nightly  prayer  for  him  to  Heaven ! 

O,  if  thou  weep'st  by  grief  distressed, 
To  think  of  me  with  danger  prest, 
Be  calm,  God  keeps  me  every  where, 
A  faithful  soldier  is  his  care  ! 


Or  we  follow  with  insatiate  ear  the  accord  which  sends  to  us 
through  the  stillness  of  the  night  a  full  concert  of  wind  music. 
There,  under  the  window,  see  we  scattered  light  glimmer,  and 
by  degrees  perceive  the  separate  music-desks,  round  which  the 
dark  figures  have  ranged  themselves.  But  the  third  piece  is 
ended,  and  all  sinks  back  into  the  stillness  of  night.  Many  a 
son  of  the  Muses  is  detained  in  Ruperto-Carolo,  fast  bound  by 
bonds  of  gentle  witchcraft,  till  the  father's  stern  behest  compels 
him  to  tear  himself  from  this  paradise. 


THE  DEPARTURE. 

What  rings  and  what  sings  in  the  streets  so  down  there  1 
Open  the  windows,  ye  maids  so  fair. 
'Tis  the  Bursche,  away  he  windeth, 
The  Comitat  him  attendeth. 

The  others  go  shouting  and  wave  their  hats  round, 
With  ribands  and  flowers  all  glowingly  crowned  ; 
But  the  Bursche,  he  loves  not  this  riot, 
In  the  centre  goes  pale  and  quiet. 

Loud  clash  now  the  tankards,  bright  sparkles  the  wine, 
"  Drink  out,  and  again  drink,  dear  brother  mine  !" 
"  With  the  farewell- wine  there  outfloweth, 
What  so  deep  in  my  heart  now  gloweth." 


OF  THE  STUDENT.  203 

The  very  last  house  which  they  go  by — 

A  maiden  looks  down  from  the  window  so  high  ; 

Fain  hides  she  her  tearful  gushes 

With  wallflowers  rich  and  sweet  rose-bushes. 

The  very  last  house  that  they  go  by 
The  Bursche  there  lifteth  up  his  eye ; 
Then  sinks  it,  his  pain  betraying, — 
His  hand  on  his  heart  now  laying. 

a  Sir  Brother !  and  hast  thou  then  no  bouquet? 
See,  flowers  there  are  nodding  and  waving  so  gay ! 
Hillo !  thou  loveliest  dear  one, — 
Of  thy  nosegays  now  fling  us  here  one  !" 

'  Ye  Brothers !  what  can  that  nosegay  do  7 
I  now  have  no  loving  Liebschen  like  you. 
In  the  sun  it  will  droop  and  wither ; — 
*  The  wind  blow  it  hither  and  thither  !' 

And  farther  and  farther  with  clang  and  song ! 
And  sadly  listens  that  maiden  long. 
"  O,  wo  !  and  the  youth  removeth, 
Whom  only  my  heart  still  loveth. — 

"Here  stand  I,  ah  !  in  my  love  profound, 
With  roses  and  with  wallflowers  around— 
And  he  for  whom  all  I  would  sever, 
He's  gone — and  gone  for  ever !" 

So  marches  he  forth,  and — "  other  cities,  other  maidens !" 

If  the  stranger  suffer  himself,  by  his  hunger  after  fresh  air,  to 
be  led  away,  in  the  days  of  a  strong  winter,  to  the  hills  above 
Heidelberg,  how  monotonous  and  wild  appears  to  him  there 
nature  in  her  funeral  robes.  The  mountains,  the  valleys,  all 
wrapt  in  that  white  winding  sheet,  are  silent.  From  a  distance 
only  comes  a  heavy  sound,  as  the  ice-covering  of  the  Neckar  is 
heaved  and  rifted  by  the  combating  flood  that  rushes  beneath  it. 
That  feeling  of  solitude  seizes  him,  and  he  follows  the  course  of 
a  small  stream  which  will,  however,  conduct  him  again  to  the 
banks  of  the  Neckar.  The  water,  whose  course  he  has  followed, 


204  WINTER  AMUSEMENTS 

has  wonderfully  wrought  the  leaves  and  the  grass  into  fantasti- 
cal ice-forms;  while,  above  him,  hang  from  the  rocks  enormous 
icicles,  glittering  in  the  wintry  light  like  crystal  daggers.  Again 
he  finds  himself  by  the  mirror-like  surface  of  the  wintry  flood, 
and  behold !  the  uniformity  of  nature  has  only  enabled  man  to 
multiply  his  pleasures.  A  glad  multitude  here  is  full  of  life  and 
activity.  With  delight  the  eye  follows  the  skilful  skater,  as  he 
now,  with  wonderful  rapidity  flies  right  forward,  now  winds  in 
graceful  sweeps  and  circles  through  the  human  mass.  He 
moves  so  freely  and  easily,  that  his  art  would  appear  quite  desti- 
tute of  art,  did  we  not  see  the  learner  in  his  first  attempts 
tumbling  at  every  trial,  till  exhausted,  he  stands  and  watches, 
with  envious  eye,  the  evolutions  of  the  practised  student.  The 
ice-field  becomes  every  moment  fuller  and  fuller,  till  the  strongly 
congealed  surface  can  scarcely  support  the  hundreds  which 
crowd  upon  it.  And  there  comes  a  troop  of  blooming  ladies, 
hastening  down  the  steep  bank  of  the  Neckar.  They  descend 
the  narrow  path,  slippery  with  frozen  snow,  cautiously,  and  a 
troop  of  their  worshippers  fly  to  receive  them,  place  them 
triumphantly  in  the  chair-sledges,  and  pushing  them  before 
them,  vie  with  each  other  in  sending  them,  with  flying  speed, 
over  the  crystal  ice-plain  far  away. 

Nothing  can  well  make  so  vivid  an  impression  on  the 
foreigner,  especially  on  the  Englishman,  as  the  sledging  proces- 
sions, which,  as  soon  as  the  snow  is  trodden  hard  enough  to 
bear,  may  be  daily  seen  issuing  from  Heidelberg.  Sometimes 
we  see  individual  sledges,  which  are  of  striking  appearance, 
gliding  rapidly  through  the  streets ;  then  greater  sledge-parlies, 
which  the  students  make  amongst  themselves,  or  in  association 
with  some  of  the  inhabitants.  A  troop  of  fore-riders,  with  the 
thundering  cracks  of  their  heavy  whips,  announce  the  approach 
of  the  sledge  of  the  lady  of  honour,  drawn  by  four  horses.  Then 
follows  a  long  train  of  sledges,  each  with  two  horses,  and  each 
containing  only  one  lady  and  gentleman.  These  sledge-parties 
afford  much  amusement  to  the  students,  and  opportunities  for 
many  a  frolic,  and  the  Chores  vie  in  outshining  each  other  in 
ingeniously  planned  and  splendidly  achieved  processions.  In 


OF  THE  STUDENT.  205 

earlier  times  masked  sledge-parlies  were  the  order  of  the  day; 
but,  in  consequence  of  many  well-known  and  distinguished  indi- 
viduals of  the  university  city  being  represented,  or  rather  mis- 
represented, they  are  now  formally  forbidden.  Even  the  ladies, 
and  the  venerable  heads  of  the  senate,  were  not  secure  from  the 
caricaturing  of  the  students.  Thus  a  stranger  related  to  me, 
with  great  horror,  that  he  had  met  a  great  company  of  ladies 
and  gentlemen  in  sledges;  all  the  ladies  had  wafted  to  him 
hand-kisses,  and,  horribile  dictu !  at  the  very  next  confectioner's, 
the  ladies,  with  evident  delight,  had  each  drunk  a  glass  of 
brandy ! 

We  recollect  a  winter,  some  years  ago,  that  was  particularly 
distinguished  by  these  pranks.  In  the  first  place,  one  of  the 
Chores  set  out  a  sledge  procession,  which  was  imposing  from 
the  number  of  its  sledges  and  the  brilliance  of  its  torches,  which 
were  carried  by  the  whole  assembled  body  of  Boot-foxes.  But 
this  was  speedily  cast  into  the  shade  by  another.  The  second 
Chore  celebrated  a  Bauer's  wedding,  riding  and  driving  in 
numerous  sledges,  in  the  Sunday  attire  of  Bauers  and  Bauerinen, 
the  country  people  and  their  wives,  old  and  young,  masked, 
into  a  neighbouring  village,  the  sledge  of  the  feigned  bride  and 
bridegroom  being  richly  garlanded,  and  there,  this  fictitious 
pair — a  couple  of  disguised  students — were  solemnly  conducted 
through  the  ceremony  of  a  marriage.  A  third  Chore  then,  in 
order  to  strike  out  something  more  piquant,  undertook  a  voyage 
by  land.  A  number  of  Neckar  boats  were  secured  on  sledges. 
They  were  all  bravely  rigged  and  equipped  with  sails,  masts, 
and  cordage,  and  sailors  were  in  full  activity,  each  crew  zealous 
to  maintain  the  honour  of  their  ship.  Some  of  them  were  seen 
with  huge  spy-glasses  looking  out  ahead  in  the  streets,  to  descry 
any  dangerous  rocks  that  might  lie  in  their  track,  which  might 
obstruct  or  fatally  terminate  their  voyage.  And  behold !  all 
was  suddenly  at  a  stand — the  sign  of  a  Beer-Kneip  was  the 
rock  on  which  they  struck.  All  hands  were  now  busy  in  trying 
to  rescue  the  ship  from  this  perilous  situation,  and  the  way  they 
went  to  work  was  to  blow  it  with  a  vast  number  of  pairs  of 
bellows,  in  order  to  send  a  very  tempest  of  wind  into  the  sails. 

18 


206  WINTER  AMUSEMENTS 

The  captain  gave  his  commands,  in  masterly  style,  through  his 
huge  speaking-trumpet,  and  at  length  the  vessel  heaved  off,  and 
all  was  quickly  again  under  sail,  the  whole  body  singing — 


THE  GALLANT  SHIP  IS  GOING. 

The  gallant  ship  is  going, 
The  strong  east  wind  is  blowing, 
The  far-off  fading  strand 
Shows  no  longer, 
Yet  glows  stronger 
Love  unto  my  native  land. 

Billows  dark  blue  foaming, 
Tell  me,  are  ye  coming 
From  that  dear  distant  strand] 
Let  them  flow  then, 
Since  they  go  then 
Back  unto  my  native  land ! 

And  as  the  billow  breaks  there, 
Love's  heart  and  ear  yet  wakes  there ; 
O  speed  to  her  away ! 

Kindly  meet  her, 

Kindly  greet  her1? 

For  of  me  you've  much  to  say ! 

Seas  from  thee  may  tear  me, 
But  my  thoughts  still  bear  me 
To  thee  in  that  dear  land ; 
What  I  sing  now, 
Winds  shall  wing  now, 
Till  it  reach  that  far-off  strand. 

When  high  the  waves  are  rearing, 
And  wild  the  storm's  careering, 
Then  think  I  but  on  thee ; 

Who  dost  change  not, 
Who  dost  range  not, 
And  no  storms  can  trouble  me ! 

All  the  songs  I  yet  may  sing  thee, 
Other,  nearer  winds  shall  wing  thee, 


OF  THE  STUDENT.  207 

Soon  the  port  will  lie  in  view  ; 

These  I'll  sing  thee, 

These  I'll  bring  thee, 
And  with  them  a  heart  that's  true ! 

Another  winter  the  luxury  of  this  amusement  had  advanced 
so  far  that,  from  beginning  at  first  with  one  horse,  the  students 
had  now  arrived  at  having  from  six  to  eight  in  each  sledge,  and 
the  academical  senate  felt  itself  called  upon  to  put  a  stop  to 
this  extravagant  proceeding.  It  forbade  them  in  future  to 
sledge  with  so  many  horses.  What  a  set-out  was  seen  the 
next  day !  An  old  superannuated  hack  was  harnessed  to  the 
most  miserable  sledge  that  the  city  could  furnish,  and  dragged 
it  along  with  the  last  remains  of  his  strength.  In  this  neat 
equipage  were  packed  together  a  dozen  students,  almost  upon 
one  another's  shoulders;  and  if  the  wretched  beast,  scarcely 
capable  of  putting  one  foot  beyond  another,  was  disposed  to 
stand  still,  he  was  urged  to  further  exertion  by  a  horribly  ugly, 
humpbacked,  and  limping  ostler,  going  before  him,  and  holding 
before  his  nose  a  most  fragrant  and  ravishing  lock  of  hay.  At 
length  they  reached  the  first  inn,  where  they  called  for  a  chop- 
pin  of  beer,  had  it  divided  into  twelve  glasses,  and  thus,  with 
about  a  spoonful  each,  attempted  to  quench  their  thirst.  Here 
they  were  encountered  by  the  inexorable  beadle,  or  poodle,  as 
they  style  him,  and  commanded  to  withdraw  so  flagrant  a 
satire  on  the  worshipful  senate's  decree.  On  the  following  day 
a  modest  sledge  was  drawn  slowly  through  the  street  where 
this  stern  enforcer  of  academical  laws  resided,  in  which  sate 
a  poodle,  whose  mouth  a  student  held  close  with  his  hand, 
while  another  offered  him  a  crown  dollar.  Not  content  with 
this  significant  emblem,  which  held  up  the  official  poodle  to  sus- 
picion, as  though  he  too  might  have  his  mouth  stopped  by  a 
sufficient  motive,  in  the  evening  came  a  crowd  of  boys,  follow- 
ing, in  wonder,  two  students,  who,  to  avoid  falling  under  the 
stringent  restrictions  of  the  senate,  had  adopted  a  new  mode 
of  sledging.  One  lay  down  on  his  back  sledgeways,  and  being 
drawn  to  some  distance,  by  his  legs,  by  his  companion ;  then 
arose,  and  drew  his  comrade  in  the  same  fashion,  the  whole 


208  WINTER  AMUSEMENTS. 

being  attended  by  a  train  of  torches,  so  that  all  the  world  might 
see  it.  But  enough  of  these  mad  pranks ;  these  were  in  past 
times.  The  sons  of  the  Muses  are  now  contented  to  distinguish 
their  sledging-parties  by  their  numbers  rather  than  their  extrava- 
gance, and  instead  of  writhing  under  senatorial  restraints,  put 
on  themselves,  the  pleasant  restraint  of  reason  and  good  taste, 
and  furnishing  a  holiday  spectacle  to  the  city,  enjoy  themselves 
a  day  of  social  hilarity. 

We  have  stated  that  after  dinner  the  student  seeks  his  coffee- 
house, and  is  not  ashamed  with  a  billiard  party  or  with  a  game 
of  cards  to  kill  an  hour  or  two.  The  last  amusement  particu- 
larly will  many  of  them  only  too  passionately  pursue;  and 
indeed  Play,  at  the  bank,  as  in  Wiesbaden,  or  Baden-Baden, 
whither  they  make  excursions,  has  plunged  many  of  them 
already  into  great  trouble.  The  student  has  invented  many 
games  at  cards,  which  are  played,  partly  for  money,  partly  for 
beer,  and  bear  peculiar  names,  as  Cerevies,  Pereat,  Schlauch, 
etc.  When  the  student  has  in  the  evening  visited  his  kneip, 
whither  we  will  presently  join  him,  he  has  then  brought  his  day's 
work  famously  to  a  close,  and  the  reader  will  join  in  the  chorus 
when  he  sings — 

Thus  we  students, — you  may  see  so, — 

Daily  fun-full,  blithe,  uproarious, 
Burschen  ever,  could  it  be  so ! 

For  the  Bursche  is  ever  glorious ! 


CHAPTER  XII. 

e 

THE  STUDENT'S  EVENING  PARTY,  WITH  ALL  ITS  CONVERSATIONS, 
STORIES,  DISCUSSIONS,  SONGS,  AND  CUSTOMS. 


My  spirit  with  pleasure  now  fain  would  I  fill, 
And  blithe  little  images  gather  at  will : 
Understand — all  poetic — I'm  young  but  the  while, 
And  must  actively  study  the  humorous  style. 

Renommist  of  Zacharia. 


AT  the  time  from  which  we  seek  to  borrow  these  pictures  of 
student  life,  there  lived  in  Heidelberg  the  young  musician 
Hoffmann.  He  had  taken  refuge  in  Ruperto-Carolo  from  the 
petty  intrigues  of  the  theatrical  world,  in  which  occupying  a 
place  in  the  orchestra,  he  had  moved  long  enough  in  a  neigh- 
bouring greater  city  to  become  thoroughly  weary  of  it.  His 
creative  spirit,  his  glowing  fancy,  a  certain  poetical  style, 
marked  him  out  and  gave  promise  that  he  would  one  day 
enrich  that  noble  art  of  music,  into  whose  depths  he  strove 
enthusiastically  to  penetrate,  with  no  ordinary  performances. 
The  means  only  had  been  wanting  to  ripen  in  him,  taking,  as 
he  did,  the  most  lively  interest  in  every  artistical  and  scientific 
pursuit,  to  the  most  beautiful  developement,  the  rich  abundance 
of  his  talents.  How  could  it  then  be  otherwise  than  that  he 
should  now  find  himself  so  happy  in  the  midst  of  the  congenial 
life  and  movement  of  that  university  city,  and  in  the  enjoyment 
of  its  natural  beauties ;  that  he  should  be  transported  to  find  so 

18* 


210  THE  STUDENT'S 

/• 

many  points  of  agreement  between  himself  and  the  student 
youth.  He  felt  the  truth  of  Goethe's  words : — "  This  acade- 
mical life,  even  if  we  cannot  boast  ourselves  of  having  partaken 
of  its  peculiar  diligence,  yet  affords  incalculable  advantages  for 
every  species  of  accomplishment,  since  we  are  perpetually  sur- 
rounded by  men  who  either  possess  knowledge,  or  seek  it,  so 
that  in  such  an  atmosphere,  even  while  ourselves  are  uncon- 
scious of  it,  we  draw  actual  nourishment." — Wahrheit  und 
Dichtung. 

The  amiability  of  the  young  Hoffmann,  and  his  social  talents, 
soon  gathered  a  circle  of  friends  around  him,  and  now  they  all 
came  together  to  celebrate  joyfully  his  birthday.  His  invita- 
tions, which  he  clad  in  various  forms  of  doggerel  rhyme,  having 
beefn  sent  round,  were  received  with  gladness,  since  every  one 
felt  that  he  had  never  known  ennui  in  the  house  of  Madame  H., 
No.  9,  since  Hoffmann  had  resided  there. 

The  room  itself  was  of  so  handsome  a  size;  the  platform 
which  raised  it  in  one  part,  gave  it  a  peculiar  aspect,  and  on 
this  elevation  he  was  accustomed  to  solace  himself  with  his 
solitary  music.  It  also  afforded  Hoffmann  a  particular  pleasure 
to  preserve  all  memorials  of  friendship  and  pleasant  times  care- 
fully, and  to  decorate  his  room  with  them.  Thus,  therefore, 
many  such  things  as  masks,  bouquets,  ribands,  and  sketches 
made  by  himself  and  by  his  friends,  tastefully  adorned  the 
room.  In  a  word,  the  apartment  was  so  agreeable,  that  every 
one  speedily  felt  himself  at  home  in  it.  The  tea-table  was 
ready  set  out,  the  pipes  filled,  and  a  cheerful  fire  flickered  in 
the  stove,  round  which  the  already  arrived  guests  had  grouped 
themselves,  and  heard  with  pleasure  the  dismal  northeast  wind 
whistle  and  roar  without. 

The  reader  has  already  been  made  acquainted  with  the 
student  Freisleben,  and  with  Eckhard  likewise,  under  the  name 
of  the  Friend.  We  shall  therefore  only  remark,  that  they  and 
the  greater  number  of  the  other  guests  had  appeared  in  their 
morning-gowns;  we  restrain  ourselves  from  describing  their 
exteriors  farther,  lest  we  should  fall  under  the  suspicion  that 
we  have  in  our  eye  actual  and  particular  persons. 


EVENING  PARTY.  211 

Freisleben  was  in  his  behaviour  grave,  and  somewhat  intro- 
verted, especially  in  large  companies ;  but  he  became,  amongst 
familiar  friends,  especially  when  he  was  upon  favourite  sub- 
jects, open  and  lively.  His  views  of  life  were  serious ;  and  he 
was  accustomed  to  conceal  them  diligently  from  the  eyes  of 
others,  and  if  any  sought  to  look  into  him  a  little  more  than 
was  agreeable,  he  would  sometimes  set  on  and  chatter  a  good 
deal  of  mystifying  nonsense.  What  others  had  no  conception 
of,  either  in  him  or  concerning  him,  his  familiar  friends,  how- 
ever, knew  right  well,  amongst  whom  was  Hoffmann.  They 
knew  that  under  his  quiet  exterior,  lay  hidden  a  mind  peculiarly 
alive  to  all  that  was  good  and  beautiful ;  yea,  that  his  outward 
coldness  was  at  the  greatest  in  the  very  moment  that  his  spirit 
was  the  most  deeply  stirred.  If  he  hated  or  loved  any  one, 
that  knew  he  very  ill  to  conceal.  For  the  rest,  he  was  tole- 
rablyfirm  in  his  principles,  and  knew  how  at  the  right  time  to 
act  for  himself  and  his  friends ;  and  his  failing  was  only  in 
the  time  of  inactivity  a  too  great  weakness  of  resolve,  and  a 
certain  romantic  turn  of  thought,  which  in  the  company  of 
amiable  ladies  brought  his  peace  too  easily  into  danger.  He 
had  pursued  the  study  of  medicine  by  no  means  with  a  one- 
sided view. 

His  neighbour,  the  Herr  von  Kronen,  a  native  of  H , 

was  to  a  certain  degree,  his  opposite  ;  and  yet  the  two  agreed 
right  well  together.  Kronen  had  something  formal  and  re- 
served in  his  disposition,  without  being  unfriendly.  He  carried 
himself  with  secure  tact  in  all  society,  and  his  sagacity  enabled 
him  to  see  through  every  one,  and  treat  them  aright,  without  seem- 
ing for  that  purpose  in  the  least  to  have  altered  his  own  behaviour. 
He  was  far  from  troubling  himself  about  the  approbation  of 
others,  and  there  were  very  few  people  of  whose  good  opinion 
he  was  desirous.  He  was  a  searching  inquirer,  and  permitted  no 
impression  to  fix  itself  upon  his  mind  till  his  understanding  had 
examined  it  on  all  sides.  He  was  cautious  in  his  judgment, 
and  was  thoroughly  candid  towards  every  sufficiently  intimate 
acquaintance.  He  had  met  with  many  bitter  experiences  in 
life,  and  was  once  cruelly  deceived  by  a  lady.  Thence  origi- 
nated his  dislike  of  all  women,  which,  however,  he  gratified  by 


212  THE  STUDENT'S 

making  court  to  them  all,  and  turning  the  most  foolish  of  them 
into  ridicule.  On  this  head  he  came  often  into  contention 
with  Freisleben,  who,  on  his  side,  ranked  women  very  high, 
and  had  a  great  opinion  of  their  general  worth.  His  favourite 
study  was  history ;  and  he  had  obvious  talents  for  a  good  diplo- 
matist. 

On  the  contrary,  Eckhard  was  a  jurist,  good,  true,  honest, 
and  had  a  practical  look.  He  was  always  joyous,  and  never 
averse  to  the  enjoyments  of  life.  He  stood  freely  and  firmly 
by  his  friends,  especially  when  it  came  to  a  duel.  His  failing 
was  an  all  too-great  Pfalzish  bluntness.  He  promised  one  day 
to  become  a  right  able  man  of  business. 

This  was  the  company  which  had  seated  itself  round  the 
stove,  and  waited  the  arrival  of  the  rest.  They  entertained 
themselves  with  scientific  subjects,  and  had  got  down  so  deep 
into  them,  that  they  scarcely  noticed  how  two  new  guests  came 
rattling  up  the  steps.  With  much  bustle  and  noise  appeared 
now  the  Jurist  Enderlin,  and  the  student  of  medicine  Pittschaft, 
whom  at  first  it  was  not  very  easy  to  recognise,  so  famously 
had  he  wrapped  himself  in  coats,  morning  coats,  cloaks,  and 
fur  cap,  against  the  cold. 

As  to  Enderlin,  every  one  knew  that  he  was  a  good,  incon- 
siderate fellow,  who  was  constantly  merry  even  almost  to  dis- 
sipation ;  with  a  piercing  voice  and  a  Pomeranian  gibberish  of 
a  dialect ;  was  perpetually  disputing,  and  only  too  ready  to  rush 
into  a  quarrel.  His  study,  jurisprudence,  occasioned  him  no 
sleepless  nights. 

ENDERLIN. — Good  evening,  gentlemen  !  I  have  the  honour 
to  present  to  you  the  great  physician  from  Petersburg.  I  must 
beseech  you  to  help  me  to  free  him  from  some  of  the  ballast 
that  he  has  loaded  himself  with,  lest  the  disrespectful  wind 
should  so  hurry  his  slow  and  reverend  steps  that  he  might  have 
been  taken  for  a  locomotive  engine. 

Eckhard  now  assisted  Enderlin  to  wind  their  friend  out  of 
his  wrappers,  as  an  onion  is  stripped  peel  after  peel.  Rind 
after  rind  was  abstracted,  till  it  was  feared  that  nothing  at  all 
would  be  left.  But  the  fear  was  vain,  for  what  of  Pittschaft 
finally  was  rolled  out,  it  required  no  microscope  to  discover. 


EVENING  PARTY.  213 

Pittschaft  far  exceeded  his  friend  in  good  nature,  and  was 
accustomed  often  to  become  his  joke.  Yet  he  was  one  of  the 
few,  who,  although  they  often  become  the  object  of  much  mer- 
riment and  laughter,  yet  never  sink  in  the  liking  and  respect  of 
their  friends  thereby.  New  schemes  and  plans  were  continually 
running  through  his  head,  and  his  especial  pleasure  was  to 
reconcile  again  to  each  other,  friends  between  whom  any 
distance  or  misunderstanding  had  arisen.  He  treated  all  matters 
with  great  importance ;  had  many  especial  friends ;  and  de- 
cided upon  things  even  when  he  knew  very  little  about  them, 
in  the  most  learned  manner.  Wavering  in  his  opinions,  he  fol- 
lowed willingly  the  counsel  of  his  friends,  and  with  as  good  will 
gave  counsel  to  others,  and  that  even  without  ever  being  asked. 
It  often  sorely  troubled  him  that,  though  he  had  always  the 
very  best  intentions,  he  seldom  could  bring  to  bear  what  he 
attempted,  yet  he  soon  comforted  himself  again,  through  the 
natural  and  acquired  endowments  and  talents  which  he  was 
conscious  of  possessing. 

HOFFMANN. — Where  then  have  you  left  our  Briton,  who  is 
seldom  so  dilatory  when  a  cup  of  tea  is  in  question? 

PITTSCHAFT. — He  is  so  busy  now  studying  the  art  of  smoking 
that  he  is  gone  to  a  bookseller's  to  purchase  a  compendium 
upon  it. 

ECKHARD. — How  do  you  like  our  new  protege,  Mr.  Travel- 
ler, then  ? 

PITTSCHAFT. — O,  that  is  a  regularly  clever  fellow.  He  seems 
so  very  desirous  to  strike  up  a  friendship  with  me.  We  have 
already  exchanged  our  views  upon  many  weighty  matters. 

HOFFMANN. — Without  doubt  thou  hast  been  the  only  winner 
by  the  exchange,  for  the  Englishman  is  a  really  amiable  fellow. 
He  takes  a  much  more  ready  interest  in  every  thing  than  his 
countrymen  are  wont  to  do ;  and  he  pleases  us  especially  in 
this,  that  he  knows  how  to  value  what  is  foreign ;  that  he  does 
not,  as  his  countrymen  commonly  do,  estimate  the  worth  of  a 
thing  entirely  by  its  resemblance,  or  dissimilarity  to  what  is 
English.  He  has  a  sound  judgment,  and  puts  his  questions  in 
that  manner,  that  one  has  a  pleasure  in  answering  them. 


214  THE  STUDENT'S 

VON  KRONEN. — Yes,  I  wo'nt  have  the  English  inveighed 
against.  They  are  an  able  people,  of  good  kernel,  and  one 
must  pardon  them  their  singularities. 

HOFFMANN. — Only  it  is  a  pity  that  the  taste  for  music  is 
nearly  lost  to  them.  I  have  often  been  vexed  with  it.  When 
they  admire  a  musical  performance,  it  generally  happens  that 
it  is  only  because  it  is  by  some  celebrated  master. 

ECKHARD. — They  must  be  excused  in  many  cases,  because 
they  are  so  completely  the  slaves  of  ceremonial;  but  if  they 
only  come  awhile  amongst  us,  they  soon  can  unlearn  that, 
and  become  in  society  as  free  a  people  as  they  are  already  a 
political  one. 

ENDERLIN. — They  are  famous  fellows  these  English,  and  box 
like  the  devil.  Nothing  would  give  me  so  much  pleasure  as  to 
have  a  round  with  one  of  them  for  once.  We  would  see, 
however,  whether  I  could  not  upset  him  with  my  Pomerlandish 
head. 

FREISLEBEN. — I  have  made  the  acquaintance  of  many  of  the 
Britons,  whose  society  afforded  me  a  genuine  pleasure.  Their 
noble  independence,  the  cool  courage,  the  practical  eye,  their 
love  of  freedom,  their  straightforwardness,  make  them  worthy 
of  esteem,  although  one  sometimes  sees  these  shining  qualities 
disfigured  by  egotism  and  indifference.  Of  the  women,  I  will 
not  speak.  "  On  the  Rhine,  are  the  ladies  very  fine."  "  In 
Saxony  also,  the  lovely  maidens  grow."  That  is  all  very 
good ;  but  in  England,  I  believe,  were  I  there,  I  should  fall  in 
love  at  least  once  every  day. 

VON  KRONEN. — Ah  !  now  we're  off  on  the  high  road  to  senti- 
mentality! It  will  not  be  long  before  he  will  give  it  you  line 
and  verse — "  how  man  can  only  be  ennobled  by  intercourse 
with  most-to-be-adored  woman."  He  will  sing  you  "  the  joys 
of  the  beloved*;"  "  the  noble  resolves,  which  out  of  an  heart," 
etc.  etc.,  and  other  such  nonsense.  No,  these  women  are 
wicked  creatures,  that  play  with  us,  as  Master  Flea  in  Hoffmann 
says — as  the  cat  with  the  mouse.  But  when  thou  hast  learned 
to  reverse  that  play,  then  art  thou  the  true  master.  Recollect 
what  Lichtenberg  says, — The  expressions — "  to  give  a  heart," 


EVENING  PARTY.  215 

"  to  give  favour,"  are  poetical  expressions.  Maidens  don't  give 
their  hearts  away,  they  sell  them  for  money,  or  honour,  or  they 
exchange  them  for  others,  in  which  exchange  they  either  have, 
or  fancy  they  have,  the  advantage. 

FREISLEBEN. — He  who  honoureth  not  woman,  and  woman's 
mind  to 

Vow  KRONEN. — Phoh !  cease  all  that  If  thou  dost  not  give 
over  I  shall  run  into  the  street  that  the  wind  may  blow  the  stuff 
out  of  my  ears.  This  is  the  consequence  of  thy  associating  so 
much  of  late  with  that  Krusenstern,  who  makes  such  an  ever- 
lasting sentimental  face,  like  a  goose  that  has  had  the  feathers 
plucked  out  of  its  living  body.  They  should  stuff  him  with 
Indian  corn,  and  hang  him  in  the  smoke,  that  they  might  grow 
him  a  good  liver,  with  its  appendage,  a  gall-bladder. 

FREISLEBEN. — Thou  judgest  to-day,  contrary  to  thy  wont, 
rashlyupon  my  friend.  Thy  judgment  is  false  and  unjust ;  but 
that  arises  from  thy  knowing  his  history.  The  poor  fellow  is 
deeply  to  be  pitied. 

PITTSCHAFT. — Freisleben,  let  us  hear  the  story.  We  are  all 
curious ;  and  thou  knowest  it  will  remain  amongst  us  friends. 

HOFFMANN. — See  there !  At  length  appears  Mr.  Traveller ! 
Good  evening.  Take  off  your  things.  Seat  yourself  by  the 
stove :  here  is  a  pipe,  and  here  the  Fidibus. 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — Best  thanks !  Ha,  it  is  savagely  cold 
without ;  but  here,  thank  God,  it  is  warm  and  comfortable. 
But  I  have  disturbed  the  gentlemen  ! 

HOFFMANN. — Not  at  all.  Freisleben  is  about  to  tell  the  story 
of  an  unfortunate  student.  I  fancy  you  would  take  an  interest 
in  it  too. 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — I  am  all  ear. 


216  THE  STUDENT'S 


STORF  OF  KRUSENSTERN  AND  AVENSLEBEN. 

FREISLEBEN. — Krusenstern,  whose  pale  and  wasted  figure  you 
now  see  passing  silently  about,  was  not  always  so.  Once  he 
was  one  of  the  handsomest  students  that  the  walls  of  Ruperto- 
Carolo  ever  enclosed.  Every  endowment  that  honours  man, 
adorned  him ;  that,  even  his  envier  must  admit.  Nature  had 
richly  crowned  him  with  her  gifts ;  and  the  education  he,  sprung 

from  one  of  the  richest  mercantile  families  of  the  city  of  N , 

enjoyed,  had  brought  those  gifts  to  their  highest  perfection ;  but 
he  had  one  shadow-side,  and  this  was  his  choleric  temperament ; 
a  failing  sufficient  to  plunge  him  into  ruin.  Similar  studies, 
similar  sentiments  united  him  in  a  strong  bond  of  friendship  with 
Von  Avensleben,  the  only  son  of  a  house  of  ancient  nobility.  It 
was  now  in  the  year  before  his  examination  that  he  first  saw 
and  became  acquainted  with  the  sister  of  his  friend ;  a  most 
amiable  lady,  who  then  resided  some  time  with  her  parents  in 
the  city  of  Heidelberg.  His  manly  nature,  free  from  all  rude- 
ness ;  his  attractive  demeanour,  which  a  fine  feeling  of  propriety 
pervaded ;  and  his  finished  education,  won  him  the  heart  of  the 
damsel,  and  he  testified  to  me  that  he  had  found  in  her  that  ideal 
which  he  had  before  continually  sought  in  vain.  I  had  the  hap- 
piness to  know  the  amiable  family  of  the  young  lady,  and  recall 
with  a  melancholy  joy  the  time  which  I  spent  amongst  these 
good,  and  then  so  happy,  people. 

The  widow  Von  Avensleben  was  as  much  distinguished  for 
her  high  accomplishment  as  for  her  most  unassuming  disposi- 
tion. She  was  well  acquainted  with  the  master  works  of  Ger- 
man and  foreign  literature ;  and  her  knowledge  of  the  world, 
and  her  nice  tact,  gave  to  her  conversation  a  peculiar  charm. 
She  embraced  her  children  in  her  innermost  heart,  her  constant 
care  was  to  smooth  out  every  slighest  trace  of  discord  between 
them ;  and  if  she  had  a  failing,  it  was  her  too  great  indulgence 
of  them. 


EVENING  PARTY.  217 

Amalia  was  the  eldest  daughter.  She  might  be  compared  to 
one  of  those  noble  metals,  which,  because  not  vainly  glittering 
on  the  surface,  escape  the  eyes  of  ordinary  men :  but  the  noble 
ore  conceals  not  its  peculiar  qualities  from  the  knowing  eye, 
which  the  more  he  observes,  the  more  beautifully  they  discover 
themselves,  and  satisfy  him  that  the  pure  metal  requires  no  fur- 
ther refinement.  In  personal  beauty  inferior  to  her  sister,  the 
maiden  had  earlier  advanced  to  a  reflection  upon  herself  and 
others,  and  her  clear  understanding  enabled  her  to  arrive  at 
noble  and  free  views  of  the  true  worth  of  outward  things,  and 
of  her  own  mind.  Thus  she  had  early  demonstrated  that  she 
was  capable  of  the  greatest  sacrifices  for  her  friends — for  her 
friends,  who  were  chosen  after  mature  consideration,  and  in 
which  choice  womanly  sagacity  and  fine  feeling  were  her 
guides.  Her  youthful  timidity  gave  place,  as  she  first  became 
conscious  of  her  worth,  to  a  noble  assurance.  She  judged  others 
with  indulgence,  but  hesitated  not  to  speak  out  what  was  an 
acknowledged  truth,  even  when  that  truth  was  not  flattering  to 
another.  Thus  showed  she  herself  constantly  as  a  noble  and 
true  soul,  which  one  must  continue  to  love  more  and  more. 

The  little  Maria  was  not  so  circumspect  as  her  sister.  As  a 
lovely  butterfly,  she  fluttered  from  flower  to  flower,  extracting 
from  each  the  best  honey.  Her  vivacity  led  her  to  embrace 
whatever  was  good  and  beautiful  with  heartiness;  but  exactly 
because  every  thing  is  not  good  and  beautiful,  was  indispensable 
to  her  a  change  of  the  flowers  from  which  she  drew  nourish- 
ment. She  knew  how  to  show  herself  friendly  and  full  of  kind- 
ness to  all  who  felt  themselves  compelled  to  pay  to  her  the  tribute 
of  her  love-worthiness,  without  tyrannically  abusing  her  magic 
wand.  But,  when  she  sometimes  saw  that  the  lovely  and  bril- 
liant side  of  a  thing  had  too  much  biassed  her  frequently  too 
predominant  feeling ;  when  she  found  herself  deceived  in  and 
discontented  with  what  she  had,  in  her  too  enthusiastic  fancy, 
taken  up,  would  she  painfully  lament  over  the  dark  side  of  life. 
Certainly,  every  one  who  had  once  seen  the  little  elegant  being, 
as  she  charmingly  and  sweetly  moved  in  society ;  every  one 
who  had  glanced  on  her  fine  and  noble  features,  and  into  her 

19 


218  THE  STUDENT'S 

speaking  eyes,  must  have  loved  her;  and  when  she,  moreover, 
sung  with  the  clear  metal  of  her  voice,  one  of  the  beautiful 
songs  which  my  friend  accompanied  on  the  piano,  every  one 
was  enchanted. 

Thus  were  they  happy  people  ;  and  the  rapidly  approaching 
completion  of  his  university  life,  his  rare  acquirements,  and  the 
protection  of  men  high  in  the  government,  gave  my  friend  the 
promise  of  a  near  and  a  yet  happier  future.  Ah !  who  could 
have  thought  that  the  peace  of  this  happy  family  should  be  so 
horribly  destroyed ;  that  this  lovely  bond  should  have  been  so 
cruelly  rent  asunder !  An  inconsiderate  action  of  the  young 
Von  Avensleben  converted  this  paradise  into  a  hell. 

He  had  accidentally  received  intelligence  of  a  serenade  which 
Krusenstern  proposed  to  give  to  his  loved  one.  This  excited 
him  to  an  ill-considered  joke.  As  his  friend  glided  near  to  the 
house  with  the  nocturnal  music,  and  standing  near  in  the  shade 
of  another  house,  delighted  himself  with  the  imagination  of  the 
joy  that  his  attention  would  give  to  Maria,  Avensleben  showed 
himself  at  the  window,  clad  in  a  woman's  night-dress,  and  threw 
a  hand-kiss  to  Krusenstern.  The  wrath  of  Krusenstern  at  this 
foolish  exposure  of  his  lady  to  the  ridicule  of  the  musicians  was 
furious,  and  a  challenge  to  a  duel  with  pistols  was  the  conse- 
quence. No  representations  were  able  to  bring  him  from  this 
terrible  resolve  ;  and  a  journey  which  the  family  of  Von  Avens- 
leben made,  in  order  to  spend  a  few  days  on  a  neighbouring 
estate  of  theirs,  afforded  the  sundered  friends  an  opportunity  to 
compass  their  unhappy  intention. 

They  drew  in  the  early  morning  to  the  appointed  place.  Kru- 
senstern with  his  seconds  was  first  there — a  spot  well  known  to 
travellers  by  the  name  of  the  Engelswiese,  or  Angel's  Meadow, 
lying  up  in  the  woods  above  the  Neckar,  on  the  opposite  side 
to  the  city,  and  showing  its  pleasant  green  area  belted  in 
by  the  forest,  to  wanderers  about  the  castle,  though  invisible  to 
the  valley  below.  He  walked  in  silence  to  and  fro,  and  gazed 
down  upon  the  city,  which  lay  gloriously  illuminated  by  the 
morning  sun.  He  could  even  distinguish  the  house  where  he 
had  enjoyed  the  purest  and  deepest  pleasures ;  he  thought 


EVENING  PARTY.  219 

over  the  happy  past ;  and  anxious  forebodings  of  a  dark  and 
perdition-blasted  future  rose  up  before  him.  The  curtain  was 
only  too  soon  to  be  drawn  aside,  which  his  eyes  were  not  yet 
permitted  to  penetrate.  His  antagonist  appeared  on  the  ground  ; 
the  old  resentment  drove  out  every  softer  emotion ;  the  seconds 
measured  out  the  distance,  the  pistols  were  loaded,  the  word 
given—Von  Krusenstern  shot — but  it  became  night  before  his 
eyes,  as  in  the  same  moment  he  saw  his  antagonist  spring  on 
high,  and  then  fall  to  the  ground.  He  had  received  his  death- 
wound. 

Who  shall  describe  the  situation  in  which  poor  Krusenstern 
found  himself! — who  the  misery  of  the  friends  of  both  !  He  was 
immovable  to  all  persuasions  to  flight,  and  was  committed  by 
the  magistrate  to  whom  he  had  surrendered  himself  of  his  own 
accord,  to  the  university  prison  until  fiyther  inquiry. 

Tha  family  of  the  fallen  youth  were  immediately  written  to, 
to  tell  them,  that,  on  account  of  some  degree  of  indisposition,  he 
would  not  be  able  immediately  to  follow  them,  as  had  been 
agreed,  and  a  friend  of  the  house  undertook  the  sorrowful  task  of 
opening  to  them  the  dreadful  intelligence.  But  the  most  terrible 
part  was  yet  to  come.  Von  Avensleben  was  highly  beloved 
amongst  the  students,  and  it  was  resolved  to  attend  his  funeral 
with  a  torch-train ;  and  that  the  wretched  prisoner,  who,  during 
all  this  time  had  sate  brooding  in  a  stupor  of  grief  without  listen- 
ing to  any  one,  might  not  perceive  it,  they  determined  that  the 
funeral  should  take  place  a  day  earlier  than  usual.  I  was  with 
the  unhappy  man  on  this  eventful  evening,  endeavouring  to  com- 
fort him,  and  to  withdraw  his  thoughts  from  the  dark  pictures 
of  his  imagination.  The  shutters  of  the  little  room  were  closed, 
but  a  tone  of  the  dismal  mourning  music  struck  his  ear  as  the 
funeral  train  passed  by  the  end  of  the  street,  along  the  Haupt- 
strasse,  or  High  Street,  of  the  city.  "  My  friend !  they  bear 
him  to  the  grave  !"  cried  he  with  a  terrible  voice,  and  rushed  to 
the  window.  I  endeavoured  to  hold  him  back,  but  he  tore  him- 
self loose  from  my  grasp  with  giant  strength,  and  bursting  open 
the  shutters  struck  his  head  against  the  iron  grating.  There 
flared  the  sullen  glow  of  the  torches,  and  the  tone  of  the  trum- 


220  THE  STUDENT'S 

pets  quivered  through  my  vitals.  With  ghostlike,  terrible,  and 
distorted  countenance,  he  gazed  after  the  melancholy  train ; — 
"  I — I  have  murdered  him  !  the  good,  the  true  friend !  There  ! 
I  see  him  with  the  bleeding  wound,  crying,  '  Wo !'  over  me ! 
Oh  God  !  Oh  God  !  thou  has  cast  me  off!  Maria  !  Maria  !  what 
have  I  done  to  thee !  Seize  me,  ye  spirits  of  hell !  Tear  me 
away  from  the  pure  angel-form  !"  So  he  raved  on,  till,  exhausted, 
he  fell  back  into  the  chamber. 

He  passed  the  night  in  the  most  horrible  delirium ;  and  for 
many  days  it  was  not  dared  to  leave  him  a  moment  alone,  lest 
he  should  effect  his  desperate  endeavours  at  self-destruction. 

But  if  the  train  left  horrors  behind  it,  it  met  yet  still  greater 
as  it  approached  the  end  of  the  city.  The  letter  had  reached 
the  family  of  Von  Avensleben,  but  the  friend  had  missed  the 
sisters  in  the  darkness  of  the  night,  as  they  hastened  back  to 
town  to  attend  their  sick  brother. 

"  Whom  do  they  bury  there  ?"  asked  the  trembling  Maria, 
as  their  carriage,  passing  in  at  the  Mannheim  gate,  was  de- 
tained by  the  mourning  procession. 

"  The  student  who  was  shot  in  the  duel,"  answered  an  old 
man,  who  did  not  know  the  young  lady — "  the  Herr  Von 
Avensleben." 

The  cry  of  horror  and  misery  in  the  carriage,  as  it  wheeling 
round  again  rolled  away  through  the  dark  night,  I  attempt  not 
to  describe.  Maria  only  too  soon  became  aware  of  the  whole 
terrible  secret.  She  fell  into  a  long  and  severe  nervous  fever, 
and  only  arose  from  her  sick  bed  to  die  a  more  weary  death 
from  the  sure  poison  of  incurable  sorrow.  She  had  written  to 
her  former  lover  a  most  moving  letter,  which  assured  him  of 
her  pardon,  and  in  which  she  exhorted  him  to  listen  to  the 
consolations  of  religion. 

The  kind  girl  had  not  desired  the  return  of  the  little  admo- 
nitory tokens  of  happy  days ;  she  had  also  retained  his  gifts, 
memorials  of  a  pure  and  beautiful  love,  which  a  dreadful  fate 
had  destroyed. 

Krusenstern,  who  spent  two  years  in  prison,  is  now  come 
back  again,  and — you  have  seen  him. 


EVENING  PARTY.  221 

All  had  listened  in  silence  to  the  recital.  Of  some  of  them, 
the  pipes  were  gone  out, — others  blew  powerfully  clouds  of 
smoke  around  them. 

"  Poor  Krusenstern !"  said  Eckhard.  "  I  revoke  all  that  I 
have  said  against  him." 

"  A  most  sorrowful  history,"  said  the  Englishman. 

"  And  false  notions  about  women  is  the  cause  of  all,"  said 
Von  Kronen.  "  The  poor  Krusenstern  would  never  have  gone 
so  far  if  he  had  not  regarded  his  love  in  too  romantic  a  light. 
This  mischief  would  never  have  happened  if  he  had  only  read 
my  favourite  author,  Lichtenberg,  where  he  says, — '  That  the 
irresistible  power  of  love  can  raise  us,  through  its  object,  to 
the  highest  pitch  of  happiness,  or  plunge  us  down  to  the  lowest 
gulf  of  misery,  is  poetical  nonsense  of  young  people,  whose 
heads  are  yet  only  growing ;  which  have  no  voices  in  the 
counsels  of  men ;  and  for  the  most  part  are  so  constructed  that 
they  are  never  likely  to  have  any.' " 

"  We  must  have  no  more  such  stories,"  said  Hoffmann,  "  or 
the  pleasures  of  the  whole  evening  will  be  destroyed.  The  tea 
is  ready ;  take  your  places,  gentlemen." 

Mr.  Traveller,  tasting  the  tea,  pronounced  it  capital;  and 
declared  his  astonishment  that  the  Frau  Philistine  could  pre- 
pare so  excellent  a  beverage ;  but  the  host  gave  him  to  under- 
stand that  he  had  brewed  it  himself.  "  It  is  my  favourite 
beverage,"  said  he,  "  and  when  I  spend  the  evening  at  home, 
serves  me  for  supper ;  or  I  cook  a  beefsteak  and  potatoes  in  the 
little  machine  which  stands  yonder,  and  which  is  a  good  deal 
in  vogue  amongst  the  students." 

"  So,  so !"  said  the  Englishman,  "  that  is  very  sensible  now." 

While  they  thus  chatted,  the  House-besom  entered,  and  set 
upon  the  table  a  handsomely-shaped  tart,  which  is  called  in  this 
part  of  the  country,  a  Radonen-cake,  as  a  gift  from  Herr 
Schiitz,  in  whose  house  Hoffmann  was  familiar.  The  cake 
was  admired,  and  the  host  addressed  himself  to  cut  it  up  scien- 
tifically, when — zounds !  the  whole  cake  was  nothing  but  a 
snow-ball,  which  had  been  made  in  a  proper  mould,  and  which 
had  received  the  requisite  colour  from  an  ingenious  powdering 

19* 


222  THE  STUDENT'S 

with  brick-dust.  "  So  shall  thou  return  to  the  water  out  of 
which  thou  wert  made,"  exclaimed  Hoffmann,  as  the  whole 
company  laughed  heartily  at  the  deception. 

When  tea  was  over,  the  company  divided  itself.  The  Eng- 
lishman and  Von  Kronen  plunged  deep  into  a  game  at  chess. 
The  other  four  played  at  whist,  and  Hoffmann,  as  master  of  the 
house,  did  the  honours,  wandering  first  to  this  and  then  to  that 
table.  The  whist  party  continued  long ;  after  the  first  rubber 
they  obliged  the  host  to  join  then,  and  so  spun  out  their  play  to 
the  fifth  rubber.  In  the  meantime  the  two  others  had  termi- 
nated their  game  at  chess,  and  seated  themselves  by  the  stove, 
smoking  their  pipes,  and  chatting  over  this  and  that. 

"Has  your  pipe  a  good  chair-way  1"  asked  the  Englishman, 
whom  this  student  expression  amused. 

"  It  goes  like  a  flute,"  answered  the  other.  "  Why  you  have 
made  yourself  master  of  the  art  of  smoking,  even  to  its  very 
technical  terms." 

"  You  can  scarcely  believe,"  said  Mr.  Traveller,  "  how  much 
I  am  interested  in  every  thing  that  is  German,  of  which  smoking 
is  one  thing,  and  especially  in  all  that  is  connected  with  its 
university  system.  So  long  as  I  continued  in  England,  I  did 
not  trouble  myself  much  on  this  head,  but  now  I  use  all  the  en- 
deavours I  can  to  acquaint  myself  with  the  present  constitution 
of  your  universities.  You  must  recommend  to  me  a  book  in 
which  I  can  find  some  notice  of  the  origin  of  universities  in 
general,  and  of  the  earlier  fortunes  of  that  of  Heidelberg  in 
particular." 

"The  best  book  on  that  subject,"  said  Enderlin,  who  had 
come  from  the  whist-table,  "  is  Von  Kronen  himself.  He  can 
give  you  such  a  lecture  upon  it,  that  all  the  rats  in  the  house 
shall  run  out ;  for  which  reason  they  wished  to  appoint  him,  in 
Westphalia,  to  the  office  of  chamber-hunter.  Tres  faciunt 
collegium,  so  let  us  erect  him  a  cathedra,  whence  he  may  pro- 
nounce his  lecture." 

These  arrangements  were  speedily  made.  In  the  meantime 
Von  Kronen  had  put  his  visage  into  a  very  learned  form,  and 
begun : — 


EVENING  PARTY.  223 


SKETCH    OF   THE    HISTORY  OF    UNIVERSITIES. 

Gentlemen, — Let  us,  as  true  sons  of  Minerva,  exhibit  an 
agreeable  contrast  to  those  people  yonder,  who  have  given 
themselves  up  to  the  burthen  of  play.  May  the  honey  of  my 
words  drop  into  your  ears,  and  turn  you  into  true  disciples  of 
wisdom.  But  the  subject  of  our  present  lecture  is  the  earlier 
fortunes  of  universities  in  general,  and  in  particular  of  Ruperto- 
Carolo,  that  ancient  fountain  of  knowledge,  out  of  which  we 
have  drunk  deep  draughts. 

"  The  sup  of  wisdom,"  interrupted  Enderlin,  "  that  we  have 
eaten  with  a  spoon,  is  a  more  beautiful  metaphor — " 

I  warn  the  indiscreet  hearer — said  the  pro  tempore  professor, 
Von  Kronen,  sternly  frowning, — of  Tit.  ii.  section  27,  of  the 
academical  laws,  where  it  is  declared  that — 'insults  towards 
persons  who  are  placed  in  authority  in  the  university,  or  towards 
the  persons  connected  with  them,  shall  be  strictly  punished ;  if 
they  are  offered  from  revenge,  so  must  the  punishment  be  made 
the  sharper,  and,  according  to  circumstance,  may  be  even 
penally  amerced.'  After  this,  let  no  man  insult  or  interrupt. 

Our  European  universities,  as  they  at  present  exist,  are  the 
production  of  a  comparatively  late  period,  since,  though  we  find 
institutions  resembling  them  in  very  early  times,  yet  they  were 
essentially  and  wholly  different  to  ours.  History  shows  us  how, 
through  the  continually  progressing  culture  of  a  people  from 
age  to  age,  institutions  for  the  fostering  and  diffusion  of  know- 
ledge formed  themselves;  and  thus  we  find,  at  first,  the  so- 
called  Priest-Schools  in  Egypt,  Persia,  India,  and  amongst  the 
Hebrews;  amongst  the  Celtic  people  the  cloister-like  unions  of 
the  Druids,  which  in  caves  and  solitary  woods,  imparted  to  the 
most  distinguished  of  the  youth  oral  instruction. 

The  business  of  teaching  was  confined  to  expounding  of  the 
laws,  of  the  holy  books,  and  so  forth,  and  was  communicated  in 
verses.  The  educational  institutions  of  the  Greeks  were  of  a 


224  THE  STUDENT'S 

i 

higher  grade.     The  first  and  most  celebrated  High  School  was 
Athens ;  which  also  in  still  later  times,  maintained  a  high  rank 
in   this   respect.     We    must   here   only   remind   ourselves   of 
the  gardens  of  Plato,  in  which  he  imparted  his  instructions  in 
philosophy.     The  Cynosarges,  where  Antisthenes  taught;  the 
Poikyle   or  Stoa,  where   Zeno   assembled   his   disciples;   the 
gardens  of  Epicurus,  and  afterwards  of  the  museum  at  Alex- 
andria.    Philosophy  was  the  great  science :   as  to  them  the 
Faculties,  as  well  as  the  so-called  Bread  sciences   (sciences 
made  a  trade  or  profession  of)  were  totally  unknown.     The 
Greeks  also  possessed  public  libraries,  as  those  at  Alexandria 
and  Pergamus.     The  educational  institutions  of  the  Romans 
were  modelled  essentially  upon  those  of  the  Greeks,  and  en- 
joyed the  most  extensive  influence  from  the  607th  year  after 
the  building  of  Rome ;  and  the  highest  veneration  was  shown 
to  professors  from  Greece,  who  taught  in  them  philosophy  and 
the  arts.     The  Romans  also  held  it  indispensable  to  visit  and 
study  in  the  schools  of  Greece,  and  their  young  nobility  espe- 
cially resorted  to  Athens,  Rhodes,  Alexandria,  etc.     The  Ro- 
mans, moreover,  were  not  acquainted  with  the  division  into 
Faculties,  and  every  man  of  standing  studied  the  liberal  arts — 
studia  humaniora — in  their  whole  compass ;  and  libraries,  and 
collections  of  works  and  remains  of  art,  were  much  more  nu- 
merously and  richly  at  their  command.     The  study  of  philo- 
sophy was  not  the  less  zealously  prosecuted  than  in  Greece ; 
but   the   grammatical   philosophy  of  the  Greek   and   Roman 
tongues,  combined  with  rhetoric  and  poetry,  were  the  highest 
objects  of  education.     The  continually  increasing  numbers  of 
the   immigrating  Grecian   professors,  led  to  the  founding  of 
many  other  schools  in  Italy.     Amongst  the  most  important  was 
the  Athenaeum,  founded  by  the  Emperor  Hadrian,  afterwards 
called  the  Schola  Romana ;   those  of  the  capitol,  and  other 
temples.     Vespasian  was  the  first  to  establish  public  professors 
of  political  science  with  fixed  salaries.     Antoninus  Pius  raised 
the  so-called  imperial  schools,  as  did  Valentinian  those  of  Rome 
generally,  to  the  higher  distinction,  by  a  thorough  and  salutary 
reform.     Athens,  however,  still  continued  to  maintain  the  high- 


EVENING  PARTY.  225 

est  reputation,  down  to  the  tenth   century,  to  which  people 
flocked  from  all  countries. 

With  the  fall  of  Rome  fell  also  the  schools,  and  all  the  higher 
institutions  for  the  diffusion  of  knowledge ;  but  with  the  spread 
of  Christianity  they  began  again  to  rear  their  heads,  but  with  a 
very  essentially  different  character.  Their  tendency  was  pre- 
eminently theological, — as  the  theological  seminaries,  and  the 
catechetical  schools,  especially  at  Alexandria,  testify ;  which 
latter  maintained  the  highest  celebrity,  from  the  second  to  the 
fourteenth  century.  This  theological  tendency  manifested  itself 
still  more  in  the  episcopal  and  cathedral  schools,  where  indeed 
the  so-called  Seven  Free  Arts  were  also  taught,  but  in  the  most 
miserable  and  imperfect  manner.  Theology,  growing  every 
day  more  sterile,  yet  exercised  a  perpetually  increasing  lordship 
over  philosophy,  and  formally  subjected  it  to  tutelage,  as  the 
monastic  schools  from  the  sixth  to  the  eleventh  century  most 
strikingly  show.  These  institutions  sought  the  immediate  pro- 
tection of  the  hierarchy,  and  the  result  of  their  labours  was 
the  School  Philosophy. 

Charlemagne  and  his  friend  Alcuin  again  first  comprehended 
the  idea  of  a  general  humane  accomplishment.  The  former 
founded  the  Schola  Palatii,  for  princes  and  young  men  of 
condition,  and  Alfred  in  England  established  similar  ones  there ; 
but  with  the  death  of  these  remarkable  men,  all  seemed  to  fall 
back  again  into  the  old  track.  These  cloister  schools,  however, 
in  the  ninth  century,  merged  into  the  so-called  Faculty  Schools; 
which  again  in  the  twefth  and  thirteenth  centuries  lived  anew 
as  Universities.  Thus,  in  consequence  of  the  schools  of  Charle- 
magne and  Alfred,  a  free  spirit  of  scientific  inquiry  evolved 
itself  from  the  cloister  schools,  which  found  a  corroborating 
co-operation  in  the  Rabbinical  schools  of  North  Africa,  in 
Spain,  and  France,  and  still  more,  in  the  schools  of  the  Arabs. 
There,  such  Faculty  Schools  stood  forth  with  especial  promi- 
nence; the  one  for  medical  science  at  Salerno;  for  jurispru- 
dence at  Bologna,  which  possessed  distinguished  privileges  as 
the  gift  of  the  Emperor  Henry  I.  through  the  Autentica  of  the 
year  1158.  The  scholastic  theology  soon  separated  itself  from 


226  THE  STUDENTS 

the  Aristotelian-Arabic  Philosophy,  and  the  seat  of  the  latter 
became  Paris.  Amongst  many  precious  privileges,  which  these 
three  institutions  received  in  consequence  of  the  Autentica  of 
Frederick  L,  that  of  Philip  Augustus  for  Paris  was  the  most 
remarkable.  It  freed  it  from  the  civil  jurisdiction,  and  placed 
it  under  the  jurisdiction  of  its  own  teachers.  Paris  was  also 
the  first  university  in  which  all  branches  of  education  were 
taught ;  yet  even  there,  still  theology  continued  to  be  the  promi- 
nent study,  and  none  of  the  universities  could  confer  all  kinds 
of  academical  honours.  So,  doctors  of  theology  could  only  be 
created  in  Paris;  of  law,  only  in  Bologna,  and  so  on.  As 
these  schools  now  became  actually  universities,  they  ceased  to 
bear  the  names  of  scholae,  studia,  studia  generalia,  and  the 
name  of  universities  was  adopted,  and  has  ever  since  continued 
in  use. 

The  teachers  of  the  universities  received  originally  no  stipend 
from  the  state.  Frederick  II.  paid  to  the  teachers  of  the  newly- 
founded  university  at  Naples  in  1224,  the  first  fixed  stipend. 
The  great  advantages  of  a  university  education  becoming,  by 
degrees,  generally  known,  occasioned  many  cities,  which  saw 
these  advantages,  to  endeavour  to  become  university-cities  them- 
selves, so  that  from  the  thirteenth  century  the  number  greatly 
increased.  Universities  were  founded  in  Montpellier  in  1220; 
in  Orleans  in  1312;  and  in  Prague  in  1348;  the  last  in  particular 
formed  on  the  model  of  that  of  Paris.  Independence  of  the 
state  created,  especially  in  Prague,  a  most  beneficial  freedom  of 
doctrine  in  the  teachers,  which  was  often  directed  against  the 
prince,  and  often  against  the  church,  with  the  most  distinguished 
consequences. 

We  are  once  more  conducted  by  the  mention  of  Prague  back 
to  the  universities  of  Germany,  and  it  must  be,  in  the  first  place, 
observed,  that  this  university  for  a  considerable  period  was,  and 
continued  to  be,  the  only  one.  But  as  knowledge  penetrated 
more  and  more  into  Germany,  and  especially  as  it  was  cherished 
and  promoted  by  the  princes,  the  want  of  such  higher  educa- 
tional institutions  was  more  and  more  felt,  and  thus  arose  in  the 
German  territory,  previous  to  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century, 


EVENING  PARTY.  227 

fifteen  universities, — of  which  Vienna  was  founded  in  1365; 
Heidelberg  in  1387;  Cologne  in  1388;  Erfurt  in  1392;  Leipsic 
in  1409;  Rostock  in  1419;  Freisburg  in  Breisgau  in  1452; 
Greifswalde  in  1456, 1472;  Trier  in  1454,  1472;  Basle  in  1460; 
Ingoldstadt  in  1471;  Tubingen  in  1477;  Mayence  in  1471.  At 
the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century  arose  Wittenberg  in 
1502,  and  Frankfurt  on  the  Oder  in  1505;  Marburg  in  1527,  the 
first  Protestant  university;  Konigsberg  in  Prussia  in  1544; 
Jena  in  1554,  1557;  Altdorfin  1675,  1678;  Helmstadt  1575. 

At  that  period,  however,  the  Protestant  princes  only  could  be 
justly  praised  for  their  care  to  provide  able  professors;  the  uni- 
versities which  continued  Catholic,  or  which  were  newly-founded 
by  Catholic  princes,  as  those  of  Dillingen  in  1613;  Paderborn 
in  1615;  and  Molsheim  in  1618;  were  occupied  by  the  Jesuits. 
In  consequence  of  the  unfortunate  Thirty  Years'  War,  many  of 
these  universities  fell;  many  suffered  much  from  the  chances  of 
war;  and  these  circumstances  incited  neighbouring  princes  to 
found  new  universities.  So  arose  the  university  at  Giessen  in 
1650;  at  Duisburg  in  1655;  at  Kiel  in  1665.  The  Elector 
Frederick  III.  of  Brandenburg — King  Frederick  I. — changed 
in  1694  the  Ritter  School  at  Halle  into  a  university.  A  general 
improvement  of  the  instruction  given  in  all  the  universities  in 
this  century  is  observable:  but  spite  of  all  endeavours  at  improve- 
ment in  this  respect,  the  sciences  all  continued  to  be  taught  in  a 
very  unphilosophical  manner,  and  in  the  Latin  tongue. 

The  necessary  advance  from  this  wretched  state  of  things 
began  with  the  eighteenth  century,  through  the  universally  rest- 
less activity  of  the  philosopher  Leibnitz.  Christian  Wolf  taught 
first  in  the  spirit  of  Leibnitz  and  in  the  German  tongue.  George 
II.  seconding  the  better  spirit  of  the  time,  founded  a  new  univer- 
sity at  Gottingen  in  1734;  Margrave  Frederick  of  Brandenburg- 
Anspach  one  at  Erlangen  in  1743 ;  and  a  Catholic  one  arose 
through  the  Prince-Bishop  of  Dalberg  in  1734  at  Fulda,  but  was 
dissolved  again  in  1804.  The  good  spirit  continued  to  work  on 
through  the  remaining  half  of  the  eighteenth  century,  and  thus 
in  1760,  Duke  Frederick  of  Mecklenburg  founded  a  university 
at  Biitzow,  which  was  in  1789  united  to  that  of  Rostock.  The 


228  THE  STUDENT'S 

Duke  Karl  Eugen  of  Wvirtemberg  in  1770  founded  that  of  Stutt- 
gardt,  which  was,  however,  again  dissolved  in  1794.  Bonn 
also  at  that  period  received  the  foundation  of  its  university. 
More  recently  was  founded  that  at  Landshut,  whither  the  uni- 
versity of  Ingoldstadt  was  removed  in  1800,  and  again  in  1827 
removed  to  Munich.  Wittemberg  ceased  in  1816,  being  united 
to  that  of  Halle;  and  in  1810  a  new  university  was  founded  at 
Berlin. 

We  have  now,  gentlemen,  taken  an  historical  glance  at  the 
German  universities,  and  at  their  foundations,  so  far  as  is  neces- 
sary. They  were  called  forth  by  the  ruling  circumstances  of 
the  times,  and  established  themselves  now  in  this  manner  and 
now  in  that.  But  it  is  especially  interesting  to  us  to  have  seen 
that  the  university  of  Heidelberg  was  one  of  the  earliest,  and 
continues  one  of  the  first ;  its  rank  no  one  will  presume  to  con- 
test. She  has  raised  her  noble  head  amid  all  the  storms  of 
time,  and  no  state  revolutions  or  other  political  epochs  could 
make  her  bend.  Ruperto-Carolo  shone  like  a  morning  sun  on 
the  horizon  of  scientific  endeavour,  and  we  now  shall  take  with 
particular  pleasure  the  opportunity 

"  To  invite  the  honourable  listeners  politely  to  partake  of  a 
modest  supper ;"  interrupted  Hoffmann.  "  Thou  mayst  finish 
thy  learned  lecture  another  time." 

VON  KRONEN. — Far  be  it  from  me  to  throw  any  obstruction 
in  the  way  of  so  praiseworthy  a  proposition ;  especially,  as  the 
favourite  adage  of  our  city  of  the  Muses  has  always  been — the 
utile  dulci. 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — So  postpone  we  then  the  continuance  of 
the  discourse  to  a  future  day. 

PHRENOLOGY. 

The  little  collation  was  in  the  mean  time  brought  up,  and  the 
company,  under  the  conduct  of  the  musical  artist,  made  the  most 
successful  attacks  on  the  ham  and  veal  cutlet.  The  Gottingen 
sausage,  moreover,  an  imitation  of  the  renowned  Sulzer,  was  as 
little  spared  as  the  potato-salad,  and  the  scattered  remains  soon 


EVENING  PARTY.  229 

alone  marked  the  battle-field.  A  noble  Rhine-wine  recruited 
the  muscles  of  the  jaw,  and  loosed  again  the  tongue  of  the  brave 
combatants.  The  affairs  of  the  day  became  the  subject  of  dis- 
course, and  occurrences  in  Hanover,  which  then  appeared  likely 
vitally  to  affect  the  interests  of  all  Germany,  were  eagerly  dis- 
cussed by  all.  Mr.  Traveller,  as  the  representative  of  England, 
stated  the  strong  feeling  which  there  prevailed  against  the  King 
of  Hanover,  and  so  they  came  to  talk  of  the  prevailing  views 
and  theories  in  England,  on  many  subjects,  and  Mr.  Traveller 
speedily  entangled  himself  in  a  discussion  on  Phrenology,  which 
he  endeavoured  to  defend.  Freisleben,  a  determined  opponent 
to  the  theory,  immediately  took  up  the  subject  zealously. 

FREISLEBEN. — They  are  now  signs  on  the  skull  that  man  will 
expound,  formerly  they  were  signs  in  the  heaven.  What  un- 
pardonable presumption,  from  certain  deviations  from  the  regu- 
larity1 of  the  outer  form,  to  infer  an  analogical  change  of  the 
soul.  A  leap  which,  according  to  my  opinion,  is  not  less  than 
from  comets'  tails  to  war.  What  presumption,  from  the  body 
to  seek  to  form  conclusions  upon  the  spirit,  whose  mode  of  con- 
nexion with  it  is  to  us  totally  unknown !  It  strikes  me  exactly 
as  if  any  one  should  infer  or  assert  the  possession  of  a  fine  sense 
of  smell,  from  the  existence  of  a  huge  nose,  or,  as  dancing  is  a 
function  of  the  foot,  that  he  who  has  a  great  foot  must  be  a 
capital  dancer. 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — Throw  the  matter  into  ridicule  as  much 
as  you  please,  but  take  along  with  you  at  the  same  time  the 
evidences  which  experience  furnishes. 

FREISLEBEN. — These  evidences  have  long  been  shown  to  evi- 
dence nothing,  and  it  astonishes  me  that  this  doctrine  of  Gall 
and  Spurzheim,  this  ephemeral  structure,  can  find  so  much 
acceptance  in  England. 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — I  know  the  thing  only  by  popular  repre- 
sentations. But  the  principles  which  are  herein  derived  from 
anatomy  and  physiology,  to  which  Gall  and  Spurzheim  have 
rendered  much  service,  the  grounds  which  pathology  and  com- 
parative anatomy  also  furnish,  appear  to  me  worthy  of  all  atten- 
tion. 

20 


230  THE  STUDENT'S 

PITTSCHAFT. — That  nobody  denies ;  but  Gall  having  rendered 
essential  service  to  the  anatomy  of  the  brain,  by  no  means  justi- 
fies his  doctrine. 

FREISLEBEN. — His  theory  must  fall,  when  it  is  assailed  a 
priori,  or  by  experience.  Above  all  things,  unphilosophical,  not 
to  say  ridiculous,  is  his  distribution  into  twenty-seven  senses.  By 
what  right  has  he  only  so  many  set  forth  ;  and  why  is  a  boun- 
dary drawn  here  ? 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — Though  many  things  may  be  said  against 
this  distribution,  yet  it  is  often  seen  in  life  that  an  individual 
sense  as  marked  out  by  Gall,  is  pre-eminently  developed  and 
frequently  almost  exclusively  predominates ;  I  remind  you  of 
his  five-sorts-of-memory  sense. 

FREISLEBEJV. — Certainly.  But  what  is  the  cause  of  this  1  Is 
it  not  to  be  sought  rather  in  external  influences,  which  especially 
develope  this  kind  of  memory  ?  And  if  we  leave  this  out  of 
view,  then  must  we  go  still  farther.  So  there  is  a  painter  who 
can  paint  only  landscapes ;  and  I  recollect  in  Matthisson's  Re- 
miniscences, to  have  read  of  a  Cretin  in  Berne,  who  could  paint 
cats,  and  cats  only,  but  them  most  excellently.  How  much  far- 
ther must  Gall's  artistical  faculty  be  subdivided,  till  it  reaches 
down  to  the  cat-painting  faculty  ! 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — The  artistical  faculty  is  probably  in  this 
painter,  but  we  must  assume  that  it  is  prevented  from  unfolding 
itself  in  all  directions. 

FREISLEBJEX. — But  there  you  knock  yourself  down.  Since, 
if  we  assume  that  there  is  no  necessity  for  the  faculty,  which 
the  external  elevation  of  the  skull  indicates,  to  develope  itself, 
then  the  whole  pile  of  Phrenology  tumbles  to  the  ground.  But 
does  it  develope  itself,  and  is  this  acknowledged  as  necessary, 
what  incalculable  and  horrible  consequences  must  this  have  ! 
All  moral  responsibility  ceases :  the  criminal  escapes  punish- 
ment, since  he  can  show  on  his  skull  the  irresistible  murder- 
sense.  But  I  will  not  pursue  this  farther,  since,  happily,  we 
have  nothing  to  fear  from  it.  Scarcely  in  a  single  instance  do 
the  outer  plates  of  the  skull-bones  correspond  permanently  with 
the  inner  ones,  and  therefore  not  with  the  brain.  I  call  to  your 


EVENING  PARTY.  231 

recollection  only  the  skulls  of  certain  animals,  in  which,  between 
the  two  skull-plates,  is  to  be  found  a  large  hollow,  as  we,  indeed, 
also  find  in  man ;  as,  for  instance,  the  hollow  of  the  forehead — 
the  frontal  sinus — which  is,  in  different  individuals,  very  diffe- 
rently developed.  Then  again  the  most  recent  physiological 
experiments  show,  that  in  occurring  injuries,  they  are  not  by 
any  means  of  so  much  consequence  in  the  external  portion  of 
the  brain,  in  the  hemisphere,  but  that  it  is  exactly  the  inner  por- 
tion which  is  of  the  most  importance,  and  which  also  has  a 
much  more  determinate  shape.  In  injuries  of  the  head  too, 
cases  have  occurred,  where  whole  spoonsful  of  the  hemisphere 
of  the  brain  have  been  taken  out  without  the  slightest  diminution 
of  the  actively  intellectual  powers.  Object  not  to  me  that  the 
convolutions  of  the  hemisphere  of  the  brain  have  been  particu- 
larly developed  in  distinguished  men — here  it  was  also  the  case 
witKthe  inner  portion :  one  part  does  not  develope  itself  with- 
out the  other.  Object  not  that  the  anatomy  of  beasts  gives  no 
secure  result,  since  if  this  is  the  case,  how  can  phrenology  itself 
dare  to  hope  to  give  more  certain  judgments  ?  The  firm  and 
immovable  part — the  form  of  the  bones  especially — is  delusive  : 
in  the  first  place,  since  they  have  long  acquired  their  form  and 
consistency  before  every  species  of  improvement  of  the  im- 
provable creature  takes  place,  which  comes  long  after  the  com- 
plete fixidity ;  and  secondly,  since  this  form  depends  so  little 
upon  our  will,  while  the  influence  of  external  causes  is  so  un- 
avoidable, and  a  single  pressure  or  stroke  can  gradually  work 
a  change,  whose  progress  no  art  is  capable  of  restraining. 
Moreover,  even  could  any  thing  be  deduced  from  this,  still  the 
firm  parts  yet  constitute  but  a  certain  and  perpetually  fixed  pro- 
portion, a  single  and  insignificant  link  in  the  chain  of  countless 
circumstances,  which  go  to  the  formation  of  the  human  cha- 
racter. 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — My  God !  my  head  is  in  a  whirligig  with 
all  this — with  all  this  rapid  German. 

FREISLEBEIV. — One  must  not  allow  one's-self  to  speak  of  the 
outer  form  of  the  head  in  which  a  free  spirit  dwells,  as  one 
would  of  a  pumpkin ;  as  little  must  we  calculate  circumstances 


232  THE  STUDENT'S 

which  depend  upon  it,  as  we  would  calculate  an  eclipse.  Others 
assert,  with  equal  probability,  that  the  character  of  a  man  lies 
in  his  countenance,  whilst  they  appeal  to  the  capability  of 
drawing  a  conclusion  on  the  whole  from  the  indications  of  a 
part ;  as  others,  supporting  themselves  on  this  sufficient  ground, 
assert,  that  man  must  act  as  a  machine.  And  to  this  class  of 
reasoning  belongs — "  in  a  handsome  body  dwells  a  handsome 
soul." 


Ridicule  majis  hoc  dictum,  quam  vcre  sestimo, 
Quando  et  formosos  ssepe  inveni  pessimos, 
Et  turpi  facie  multos  cognovi  optimus. 

Pheedrus. 


PITTSCHAFT. — Ah,  if  we  could  but  first  rightly  understand  the 
changes  in  the  brain  itself.  But  a  great  visible  change  in  the 
brain  may  be  a  very  little  change  for  the  soul,  and  vice  versa. 
And  how  will  people  draw  conclusions  from  the  very  vault  of 
the  brain  ? 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — But,  gentlemen,  recollect  how  often  phre- 
nologists, from  the  outward  form  of  the  skull,  have  drawn 
correct  conclusions.  Recollect  the  allocation  of  distinguished 
heads  as  they  are  to  be  seen  in  plaster  in  the  English  and 
German  museums. 

FREISLEBEN. — Yes,  they  have  drawn  some  very  neat  con- 
clusions, but  we  know  very  well  how  that  stands.  The  false 
conclusions  have  been  carefully  put  out  of  sight ;  and  yet 
sufficient  of  them  have  come  to  the  daylight  to  render  the 
phrenologists  ridiculous.  They  are,  indeed,  often  still  more 
innocent,  the  worthy  demonstrators  only  seeing  that  which 
they  knew  very  well  before.  Recollect  also  what  a  sagacious 
German  naturalist  says : — "  The  proof  of  the  demonstration 
which  the  phrenologist  makes  is,  in  most  cases,  as  superficial 
as  the  demonstration  itself.  Let  a  man  eat  a  shovelful  of  salt, 
according  to  the  prescription  of  Aristotle,  with  the  person  upon 
whose  head  and  heart  he  makes  so  superficial  a  judgment,  and 
he  will  then  find  what  will  become  of  his  former  judgment. 


EVENING  PARTY. 

But  to  err  is  human,  and  that  not  exclusively,  for  it  is  some- 
times the  fate  of  angels."  Talent,  and  the  endowments  of  the 
spirit,  generally  have  no  signs  in  the  solid  portion  of  the  head* 
To  prove  this,  let  the  selected  casts  of  thinking  heads,  and 
selected  ones  of  fools  and  not-thinking  men,  be  placed  side  by 
side ;  and  not  the  head  of  the  learned  man,  of  a  careful  edu- 
cation, be  placed  in  opposition  to  that  of  the  worst  specimen 
of  the  totally  uneducated  country  booby.  Bedlam  is  peopled 
with  inhabitants,  who,  if  they  did  not  stand  staring  as  if  chilled 
into  stone,  or  smiling  at  the  stars,  or  listening  to  the  song  of  the 
angels,  or  would  blow  out  the  dog-star,  or  stood  trembling  with 
folded  arms, — if,  in  fact,  they  were  not  judged  by  these  aberra- 
tions, but  by  the  shape  of  their  heads  alone,  would  command 
the  highest  respect.  Still  less  can  we  draw  correct  conclusions 
from  the  shape  of  the  living  head  than  from  the  bare  skull  itself. 
A  skilful  artist,  without  exceeding  the  bounds  of  the  probable, 
would  be  able  to  cast  in  wax  a  covering  of  muscles  and  skin 
for  the  head  of  any  skeleton,  and  give  it  an  expression  which 
should  possess  any  aspect  that  he  pleased.  And  thus  may  the 
skull  of  a  living  person  be,  in  reality,  so  covered  with  an  irre- 
gular mass  of  muscular  and  cuticular  integuments,  as  shall  give 
an  equally  delusive  effect 

VON  KRONEN — whose  attention  had  become  excited  by  this 
illustration — here  interposed.  What  an  immeasurable  leap  from 
the  exterior  of  the  body  to  the  interior  of  the  soul !  Had  we  a 
sense  which  enabled  us  to  discover  the  inner  quality  of  bodies, 
yet  would  such  a  leap  still  be  a  daring  one.  It  is  a  well  esta- 
blished fact,  that  the  instrument  does  not  make  the  artist ;  and 
many  a  one  with  a  fork  and  a  goosequill  would  make  better 
sketches  than  another  with  an  English  case  of  instruments. 
Sound  manly  sense  soon  sees  into  this ;  it  is  only  the  passion 
for  innovation,  and  an  idle  sophistry,  soothing  itself  with  false 
hopes,  which  will  not  see  it.  If  a  ship-captain  answered  a 
fellow  who  offered  himself  to  his  service  with  enthusiasm — 
"  Thy  will  is  good,  but,  nevertheless,  thou  art  of  no  use  to  me. 
Thy  shoulders  are  too  narrow,  and  thou  art  too  small  altogether 
for  the  service,"  then  must  the  good  fellow  probably  put  his 

20* 


334  THE  STUDENT'S 

hand  on  his  mouth ;  but  if  the  captain  said,  "  Thou  actest  like 
a  worthy  fellow,  but  I  see  by  thy  figure  that  thou  constrainest 
thyself  at  this  moment,  and  art  a  scamp  in  thy  heart;"  in  truth, 
such  an  address  would,  in  any  place,  to  the  end  of  the  world, 
be  answered  by  any  honest  fellow  with  a  box  on  the  ear. 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — You  will  make  me  in  the  end  suspicious 
of  the  whole  circle  of  physics,  or  otherwise  I  must  believe  that 
you  allow  no  place  to  the  phrenologist  amongst  natural  philo- 
sophers. 

FREISLEBEN. — I  permit  him  freely  to  class  himself  amongst 
the  naturalists ;  but  he  must  attempt  to  take  no  greater  rank 
amongst  them  than  the  soi-disant  political  prophet  does  amongst 
subtle  statesmen.  But  one  can  by  no  means  class  the  genuine 
natural  philosopher  and  the  phrenologist  and  physiognomist 
together.  The  first  err  often  humanly,  the  others  err  con- 
tinually and  monstrously. 

While  this  discussion  had  grown  warm,  amongst  the  others  a 
lively  conversation  had  arisen  on  recent  literature.  They  gave 
their  opinions  on  the  recent  English  romances  of  Bulwer  and 
Marryat,  which  then  were  the  order  of  the  day.  They  con- 
demned some  of  the  later  productions  of  the  French.  They 
contended  for  and  against  the  influence  of  the  young  Germany  ; 
criticised  Gutzhow's  newest  romance ;  and  soon  were  upon  a 
general  theme,  the  different  tendency  of  the  public  in  England 
and  Germany.  There  the  preference  for  popular  representa- 
tion ;  the  neglect  of  scientific  reading,  together  with  the  very 
superficial  school  education ;  here,  on  the  contrary,  reverence 
for  science,  and  over-driven  grasping  after  scientific  things,  and 
a  passion  to  be  learned,  which  especially  shows  itself  repulsively 
in  the  ladies,  when  they  are  carried  away  into  the  scientific 
vortex;  they  bewailed  the  wretched  mass  of  rubbish  that  was 
now  read,  and  especially  that  the  Germans  by  reading  too  much 
did  themselves  injury.  That,  in  particular,  in  the  schools  the 
children  were  held  more  to  learning  by  rote  than  to  thinking ; 
at  the  same  time  thankfully  acknowledging  that  it  was  sought 
with  all  diligence,  to  correct  this  error  in  the  new  Folks' 
Schools.  "  In  England,"  says  Freisleben,  "  one  finds  more 


EVENING  PARTY.  235 

original  character  in  company,  and  amongst  the  common 
people,  as  may  be  seen  in  the  English  writings.  In  Germany  it 
is  totally  different.  And  if  any  one  stumbles  on  an  original  dis- 
covery, how  long  it  continues,  till  his  discovery,  and  till  he  him- 
self become  known.  In  Germany  the  greatest  discoveries  have 
been  made,  but  they  weighed  them,  and  doubted  so  long  whether 
they  were  new  and  would  be  useful,  that  their  neighbours  the 
French  or  the  English  seized  on  them,  and  secured  the  advan- 
tages of  them  to  themselves." 

ECKHABD. — No  nation  feels  so  much  the  worth  of  other  nations 
as  the  Germans ;  and  yet  is,  alas !  so  little  regarded  by  most  of 
them,  even  for  this  obeisance. 

ENDERLIN. — I  think  the  other  nations  are  quite  in  the  right. 
A  nation  that  would  please  all,  deserves  to  be  despised  of  all. 
This  has  been  pretty  much  the  case  with  Germany,  and  it  is 
only  just  now  that  other  people  have  learned  to  estimate  her 
properly. 

VON  KRONEN. — Lichtenberg  in  his  time  said  justly — "  The 
character  of  the  Germans  lies  in  two  words :  patriam  fugimus." 
—  Virgil. 

HOFFMANN. — Yes,  Lichtenberg — that  is  an  original  character ! 
I  have  learned  to  prize  him  properly  from  Von  Kronen.  Yes- 
terday, for  the  first  time,  I  read  his  famous  essay  on  the  state  of 
the  German  Romance  of  his  time.  It  pleased  me  so  much  that 
I  must  read  it  out  to  you.  It  is  short,  and  will  at  least  be 
finished  before  the  Phrenologists  and  Anti-Phrenologists  there 
have  finished  their  discussion. 


ON  THE  GERMAN  ROMANCE. 

Our  mode  of  living  is  become  so  simple,  and  all  our  customs 
so  little  mysterious ;  our  cities  are,  for  the  most  part,  so  small, 
the  land  so  open;  all  is  so  simply  true,  that  a  man  who  is 
desirous  to  write  a  German  romance,  hardly  knows  how  he  is 
to  bring  the  people  together,  or  to  lay  his  plot.  Then,  as  the 
mothers  now  in  Germany  suckle  their  own  children,  there  is  an 
end  of  all  exchanging  them,  and  a  fountain  of  emotion  is  thus 


236  THE  STUDENT'S 

stopped,  that  is  not  to  be  purchased  with  money.  If  I  would 
persuade  a  maiden  to  come  out  in  man's  clothes,  that  is  imme- 
diately discovered,  and  the  servants  betray  it,  before  she  can 
get  out  of  the  house ;  and  besides,  our  ladies  are  educated  in 
such  housewifely  notions  that  they  have  not  the  heart  in  them 
to  do  any  thing  of  the  kind.  No,  to  sit  fine  by  mamma,  to 
cook  and  to  sew,  and  to  become  themselves  cooks  and  sewing 
mothers,  that  is  their  business.  It  is  undoubtedly  very  conve- 
nient for  them,  but  it's  a  shame  to  the  Fatherland,  and  an 
invincible  obstacle  to  the  romance  writer. 

In  England,  people  think  that  if  two  persons  of  the  same  sex 
sleep  in  the  same  room,  a  fever  is  unavoidable,  on  which  ac- 
count the  people  in  one  house  are  by  night,  for  the  most  part 
separated,  and  a  writer  has  only  to  take  care  that  he  sets  open 
the  house-door,  and  he  can  let  who  he  will  into  the  house,  and 
need  not  fear  that  any  body  will  awake  sooner  than  he  would 
have  them.  Furthermore,  in  England  the  chimneys  are  not 
merely  the  channels  of  smoke,  but  the  especial  windpipes  of  the 
chambers,  and  afford  at  the  same  time  such  an  excellent  way 
to  come  down  into  any  room  of  the  house,  at  once  and  unheard, 
that  I  have  often  been  told  that  he  who  had  once  gone  up  and 
down  a  chimney  would  prefer  it  to  a  staircase. 

In  Germany  a  lover  would  make  a  pretty  journey  if  he  were 
to  come  down  a  chimney !  Yes,  if  he  had  a  mind  to  fall  into  a 
fire-hearth,  or  into  a  wash-kettle  with  lye,  or  into  an  anti- 
chamber  with  two  or  three  stoves,  which  one  probably  could 
not  open  from  within  at  all.  And  suppose  one  should  let  the 
lover  come  down  into  the  kitchen,  the  question  then  is,  which 
way  would  you  bring  him  first  upon  the  roof?  The  cats  in 
Germany  can  take  this  way  to  their  loves,  but  not  men.  On 
the  contrary,  in  England,  the  roofs  make  a  kind  of  street  which 
sometimes  are  better  than  those  on  the  ground ;  and  when  a 
man  is  upon  one,  it  costs  him  then  no  further  trouble  to  get 
upon  another  than  to  run  across  a  village  street  in  winter. 

People  will  say  that  those  contrivances  have  been  hit  upon 
on  account  of  fires ;  but  as  these  scarcely  occur  once  in  one 
hundred  and  fifty  years  in  any  house,  so  I  conceive  that  they 


EVENING  PARTY.  237 

have  rather  been  found  advantageous  to  lovers  driven  to  extre- 
mity and  to  thieves,  who  very  often  take  this  way,  when  they 
might  have  chosen  others,  and  certainly  always  when  a  hasty 
retreat  is  necessary,  exactly  as  the  witches  and  the  devil  are 
wont  to  do  in  Germany,  Finally,  a  right  powerful  prevention 
of  intrigues  is  that  otherwise  fine  and  praiseworthy  conceit  of 
the  post-directors  in  Germany,  by  whom  a  vast  amount  of  the 
virtues  of  the  times  are  preserved,  since  instead  of  the  English 
coaches  and  chaises,  in  which  a  princess  in  the  most  delicate 
condition  would  neither  fear  nor  be  ashamed  to  travel,  they 
have  substituted  those  so-beloved  open  Rumpelwagen.  For 
what  mischief  the  convenient  coaches  and  the  most  excellent 
highways  of  England  may  occasion,  is  not  to  be  expressed  by 
words. 

For,  in  the  first  place,  if  a  maiden  goes  out  of  London  with 
her  lover  of  an  evening,  they  may  be  in  France  ere  the  father 
awoke,  or  in  Scotland  ere  he  has  come  to  resolve  with  his 
relations  what  he  shall  do;  therefore,  a  writer  has  need  of 
neither  fairies,  conjurors,  nor  talismans  in  order  to  bring  the 
beloved  into  security,  since  if  he  can  only  bring  them  to 
Charing-Cross  or  Hyde-Park  Corner,  they  are  as  safe  as  if  they 
were  in  Weaver  Melek's  chest  in  the  Persian  Tales. 

On  the  contrary,  in  Germany,  if  the  father  misses  but  his 
daughter  on  the  third  day ;  if  he  only  knows  that  she  is  gone  by 
post-wagon,  he  can  mount  his  horse  and  seize  her  again  at  the 
third  station.  Another  mischievous  circumstance  is  the,  alas ! 
much  too  good  company  in  the  commodious  stage-coaches  of 
England,  which  are  always  filled  full  of  beautiful  and  well- 
dressed  ladies,  and  where — a  thing  which  parliament  ought  not 
not  to  suffer — the  passengers  so  sit,  that  they  must  gaze  upon 
one  another  ;  whereby  is  endangered,  not  only  a  highly  danger- 
ous bewilderment  of  the  eyes,  but  sometimes  a  highly  shameful, 
and  on  both  sides  a  smile-exciting  bewilderment  of  the  legs  of 
the  opposite  traveller ;  and  finally,  as  frequently  as  dissolving  a 
bewilderment  of  souls  and  thoughts  arises,  so  that  many  an 
honourable  young  man  who  was  proposing  to  travel  from  Lon- 
don to  Oxford,  has  instead  of  that  travelled  to  the  devil.  Such 


238  THE  STUDENT'S 

things,  thanks  to  heaven,  are  impossible  in  our  post-wagons; 
since,  in  the  first  place,  no  genteel  ladies  could  possibly  seat 
themselves  in  such  a  conveyance  if  they  had  not  in  their  youth 
been  after  climbing  hedges,  magpie-nesting,  apple-gathering  and 
battering  down  of  walnuts  ;  since  the  spring  over  the  side-ladder 
requires  a  remarkable  nimbleness,  and  no  lady  can  do  it  with- 
out setting  the  coach-master  and  the  ostler-fellows  that  are 
standing  round,  laughing.  In  the  second  place,  the  passengers 
so  seat  themselves,  when  they  at  length  do  seat  themselves, 
that  they  cannot  look  each  other  in  the  face,  and  in  such  a 
situation,  whatever  may  be  said  to  the  contrary,  cannot  very 
well  begin  an  intrigue.  Conversation  loses  all  its  spice,  and  one 
can  at  the  most  only  understand  what  another  says,  but  not 
what  he  desires  to  say.  In  short,  one  has  something  else  to  do 
in  a  German  post  wagon  than  to  gossip ;  one  must  hold  one's- 
self  fast  when  we  come  to  holes,  hold  ourselves  in  readiness  for 
a  spring  in  case  of  accident ;  must  keep  an  eye  on  the  boughs, 
and  duck  at  the  proper  time,  that  one's  hat  or  one's  head  may 
be  left  in  its  place ;  keep  an  eye  to  the  windy  side,  and  keep 
strengthening  the  clothing  on  that  quarter  from  which  the  attack 
comes ;  and  if  it  rains,  why  then  one  has  the  property  common 
to  other  creatures  that  live  neither  in  the  water  nor  on  the  water, 
of  being  silent  when  it  is  wet ;  and  thus  the  conversation  stands 
at  once  stock  still.  If  one  at  length  reaches  a  Wirthshaus  (inn,) 
thus  passes  the  time  amongst  other  things — one  dries  himself, 
another  shakes  himself,  one  sucks  his  lozenge,  another  blows  up 
his  cheeks,  or  enacts  whatever  other  child's  megrim  he  may  be 
in  the  habit  of  on  such  occasions.  And  hereby  comes  a  circum- 
stance into  notice  which  makes  all  friendly  intercourse  in  a 
Wirthshaus  impossible;  to  wit, — that  since  so  many  miseries 
are  bound  up  with  post-wagon  travelling,  so  care  has  been  taken 
that  the  Wirthshauses  shall  be  made  so  much  worse  than  is 
necessary,  in  order  to  render  a  return  to  the  post-wagons  the 
more  tolerable.  And  nobody  can  imagine  to  himself  what  an 
effect  that  has  too.  I  have  seen  people  who  were  pounded  and 
knocked  to  pieces,  and  sighed  ardently  for  repose,  that  when 
they  saw  the  Wirthshaus  in  which  they  were  to  refresh  them- 


EVENING  PARTY.  239 

selves,  with  the  courage  of  heroes,  have  resolved  to  travel  on, 
which  was  similar  to  the  fortitude  of  Regulus,  which  drove  him 
back  to  Carthage,  although  he  knew  that  they  would  there  put 
him  into  a  sort  of  German  post-wagon,  and  so  let  him  roll 
down  the  hill. 

So  fall  through  altogether  the  stage-coach  intrigues  with  the 
stage-coaches  themselves,  those  true  hot-houses  of  episodes  and 
declarations.  But,  it  will  be  said,  there  is  now  a  stage-coach 
in  Hanover.  Good,  I  know  it ;  and  one  quite  as  good  as  an 
English  one.  And  must  we,  therefore,  begin  all  our  romances 
on  the  way  between  Haarburg  and  Minden,  which  we  now 
leave  so  swiftly  behind  us  that  we  have  hardly  time  to  see  it? 
All  that  the  travellers  do  there,  is  to  break  out  in  praise  of  the 
king  who  has  ordered  this  coach,  and  to  sleep ;  for  they  are 
generally  so  wearied  before  they  get  into  this  coach,  that  they 
then  fancy  they  are  got  home,  or  that  they  lie  in  bed.  But 
those  are  proper  objects  truly  to  fill  a  romance  with !  To  in- 
troduce five  sleeping  merchants,  all  snoring;  or  to  fill  out  a 
chapter  with  the  praises  of  the  king !  The  first  is  by  no  means 
a  fit  subject  for  any  book,  and  the  latter  for  no  romance. 

But  through  this' exception,  I  have  wandered  from  my  proper 
business.  Yes,  if  there  were  not  left  yet  a  monastery  or  two, 
to  which  we  can  bring  a  loving  couple  for  refuge,  I  should  not 
know  how  to  carry  on  a  German  romance  to  the  third  page ; 
and  when,  in  fact,  there  shall  no  longer  be  a  cloister  left,  there 
is  an  end  of  German  romance. 


The  majority  of  the  company  paid  their  tribute  of  approba- 
tion to  this  satire.  The  observations  which  they  made  upon  it 
were  interrupted  in  good  time  by  the  appearance  of  a  steaming 
bowl  of  punch.  When  the  guests  had  filled  their  glasses,  Hoff- 
mann seized  his  guitar,  and  accompanied  the  voices  of  the  rest, 
who  sung  Schiller's  famous  song. 


240  THE  STUDENT'S 


THE  FOUR  ELEMENTS. 

Four  Elements  all  thoroughly  blent, 
Build  up  the  world,  our  being  cement. 

Press  ye  the  juice  of  citrons,  and  pour ; 
Harsh  is  of  life  the  innermost  core. 

Now  let  the  sugar's  tempering  juice, 
Softly  the  fiery  harsh  strength  reduce ; 

Now  let  the  water  bright  gushing  fall ; 
Peacefully  water  embraceth  all. 

Let  drops  of  spirit  therein  be  thrown ; 
Life  to  the  life  it  giveth  alone. 

Quaff  it  off  quickly  ere  virtue  goes, 
Only  revives  the  well  while  it  glows. 

Freisleben  arose,  and  said,  "  Let  us  drink  to  the  prosperity  of 
our  friend.  May  many  happy  years  find  him  still  young  in  his 
spirit,  and  in  the  love  of  his  art.  May  future  generations  lament 
that  he  did  not  live  amongst  them.  May  he  be  continually 
surrounded  by  friends  who  love  him  as  we  do !  May  he  only 
know  sickness  that  he  may  learn  more  vividly  to  enjoy  health. 
May  so  much  earthly  good  fall  to  his  lot,  that  he  may  live  con- 
tented. To  his  prosperity  let  us  give  a  three  times  thundering 
Live-hoch  !  Vivat ! — vivat ! — vivat !" 

HOFFMANN. — To  the  prosperity  of  my  dear  friends!  May 
you — if  in  the  autumn  of  our  lives  we  should  meet  again — say 
to  me,  "  All  that  we  once  wished  thee  on  thy  birthday,  has  had 
its  fulfilment  in  ourselves.  But  may  there  never  come  a  winter 
in  your  lives!"  Let  us  sing  something  in  company. 


EVENING  PARTY.  241 


THERE  TWINKLE  THREE  STARS. 

There  twinkle  three  stars,  oh  !  so  friendly ! 

F  the  darkness  of  life  do  they  shine, 
These  stars,  oh  !  they  sparkle  so  kindly, 

We  call  them  love,  music,  and  wine, 

We  call  them  love,  music,  and  wine. 

There  lives  in  the  sweet  voice  of  singing, 

A  heart  sympathizing  and  true ; 
Song  giveth  new  youth  to  rejoicing, 

And  barreth  the  heart  to  all  rue ! 

But  wine  unto  song  is  united, 

A  joyous  and  wondrous  thing ; 
With  glowing  rays  clothes  itself  brightly, — 

To  earth  a  perpetual  spring  ! 

But  glitt'ring  and  joyfully  winking, 

When  brightly  the  third  star  doth  shine ; 

It  sounds  in  the  spirit  like  singing, 
It  glows  in  the  bosom  like  wine. 

Then  fill,  ye  three  cordial  planets, 

Our  breasts  with  your  glory  divine ; 
In  life  and  in  death  our  companions, 

Be  love,  and  sweet  music,  and  wine ! 

And  wine,  and  sweet  love,  and  singing, 

They  honour  the  festival  night ; 
Then  live !  who  in  kissing  and  loving, 

In  wine  and  in  singing  delight! 

In  wine  and  in  singing  delight ! 

HOFFMANN. — Gentlemen,  don't  drink  yet.     I  must  yet  once 
more  animate  you;  so  then  sing: — 

Roundelay  and  barley-wine, 

Love  we  them  for  ever ; 
Grasp  them  bravely  where  they  shine, — 

Cup's  exhausted  never ! 
21 


242  THE  STUDENT'S 

(To  Mr.  Traveller.)     Brother,  thy  beloved  is  called  1 — 
MR.  TRAVELLER. — Georgina. 

ALL. — Georgina,  she  shall  live-o !  shall  live-o ! 
Georgina,  she  shall  live-o ! 

ALL. — Roundelay  and  true  grape  wine, 

Love  we  them  for  ever. 
Grasp  them  bravely  where  they  shine, — 
Cup's  exhausted  never. 

(To  Von  Kronen).     Brother,  thy  beloved  is  called  ? — 
VON  KRONEN. — Rapunzel. 

ALL. — Rapunzel,  she  shall  live-o  !  shall  live-o!  shall  live-o! 
Rapunzel,  she  shall  live-o ! 

So  goes  the  song  in  this  manner  round ;  and  each  one  names 
the  actual  or  feigned  name  of  his  lady. 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — Where,  then,  have  you  found  the  name  of 
Rapunzel,  Von  Kronen  ? 

VON  KRONEN. — Look  into  Grimms'  "  Kinder  und  Haus- 
Marchen ;"  there  you  may  read  the  moving  history  of  Rapun- 
zel, which  has  so  seized  upon  me  that  I  have  without  further 
ado  made  the  poor  Rapunzel  my  beloved. 

ENDERLIN. — I  hope  that  thou  correspondest  with  her.  How 
touchingly  must  the  subscription  of  the  letters  sound : — "  Thy 
faithful  Rapunzel,"  or  "  Thy  affectionate  Rapunzel." 

PITTSCHAFT. — But  do  procure  me  the  favour  of  thy  Rapunzel 
writing  something  in  my  Stammbook. 

VON  KRONEN. — In  thy  bore  of  a  Stammbook?  But  O  yes ! 
yes !  for  she  is  quite  at  liberty  to  write  in  what  she  will. 

PITTSCHAFT. — And  what,  I  wonder,  will  she  write  1 

VON  KRONEN. — Instead  of  an  answer,  which  perhaps  after 
all  may  not  come,  I  will  give  thee  an  anecdote. 

Every  body  knows  how  great  was  at  one  time  the  rage  in 
the  universities  to  have  Sfeammbiicher.  Every  student  kept 
one ;  and  all  the  inmates  of  the  house,  the  numerous  members 
of  the  landsmannschaft,  the  whole  body  of  the  teachers  and 


EVENING  PARTY.  343 

other  acquaintances  who  approached  him,  each  and  all  found 
their  place  in  it.  A  student  even  came  once  to  Dr.  Semmler 
in  Halle,  with  the  request  that  he  would  have  the  goodness  to 
write  in  his  Stammbuch.  Semmler,  who,  spite  of  his  well- 
known  and  highly  praiseworthy  economy  of  time,  could  not 
repress  his  curiosity  to  turn  over  the  leaves  of  the  Stammbuch, 
found,  to  his  great  amazement,  almost  on  every  page  such 
sentences  and  sayings  as  were  not  the  most  calculated  to  give 
him  a  high  idea  of  the  morality  of  the  friends  of  the  gentleman 
Stammbuch-holder.  Finding  a  clear  page,  he  therefore  wrote — 
Matt.  viii.  31.  "  Lord,  suffer  me,  that  I  go  amongst  this  herd 
of  swine." 

PITTSCHAFT. — If  Rapunzel  could  say  such  stupid  things  as 
thou  dost,  I  should  set  her  down  for  a  very  conceited  person, 
and  would  not  trouble  her  with  my  Stammbuch,  more  particu- 
larly that  she  might  not  get  a  wicked  notion  of  the  morality  of 
my  friends,  and  amongst  them  of  her  beloved. 

HOFFMANN. — Away  with  all  personalities.  Let  us  have  a 
roundelay. 

There  goes  a  drinking-law  our  table  all  around,  around — 
There  goes  a  drinking-law  our  table  all  around  :— 

Three  times  three  are  nine-a, 

Ye  know  well  what  I  opine-a. 
There  goes  a  drinking-law  our  table  all  around. 

What  a  jolly  time  the  damsels  have  though — 
They're  not  compelled  to  the  war  to  go. 

[Here  he  drinks  out  his  glass,  as  each  one  does  in  his  turn,  after  having  sung.] 


THE  KRAHWINKLER  LANDSTURM. 

But  march  you  slow  there  before,  but  still  march  slow  there  before, 
Or  the  Krahwinkler  Landsturm  can  follow  no  more. 

What  a  jolly  time  the  maidens  have  though, — 
They're  not  compelled  to  the  war  to  go. 


244  THE  STUDENT'S 

PITTSCHAFT— Dame  hostess,  cook  you  Millet-bree, 

When  the  Landsturm  comes  it  will  hungry  be. 

CHORUS — [As  above,  and  repeated  after  the  singing  of  each  strophe.] 

FREISLEBEN—  Our  captain  is  from  Rudolstadt, 

He  eats  a  deal,  but  hungers  for  all  that. 

VON  KRONEN —  Sir  Captain !  my  follower  goes  so  in  trot, 
That  scarcely  a  scrap  of  heel  I  have  got. 

ENDERLIN —      At  Leipsic,  in  the  People's-Fight, 

We  had  nearly  taken  a  prisoner  quite. 

ECEHARD —        The  artillery  would  have  fought  right  well, 
But  of  powder  it  can  not  bear  the  smell. 

HOFFMANN  (for  MR.  TRAVELLER) — The  cavalry  stout  doth  charge  amain, 

And  is  always  in  when  the  dumpling's 
slain. 

HOFFMANN. — Still  farther  goes  our  Lumpitus  yet  once  more 
around ! 

At  Hamburgh  burst  a  dreadful  bomb, 

Potz  Wetter !  how  ran  we  there  all  and  some  ! 

And  as  the  foe  came  galloping  fast, 
We  hid  in  the  grass  till  they  were  past. 

The  Krahwinkle  Landsturm  hath  courage  high, 
The  baggage  it  always  standeth  by. 

Our  Captain  is  a  most  valiant  wight, 
'Tis  only  a  pity  he  can  not  fight. 

They  gave  us  a  banner  moreover  to  show, 
Which  way  the  wind  did  chance  to  blow. 

Run,  run,  brave  comrades,  run  left  and  right — 
A  French  sentry-box  stands  there  in  sight ! 

This  song  was  written  originally  in  ridicule  of  the  Austrian 
Landwehr.  It  has  almost  endless  strophes,  of  which  a  few 
only  are  here  given.  It  is  very  frequently  used  as  a  Round- 


EVENING  PARTY. 


245 


song  or  roundelay,  in  which  each  person  must  sing  a  fresh 
verse,  and  when  the  known  verses  are  at  an  end,  some  one 
extemporizes,  so  that  every  day  it  becomes  richer  in  strophes. 
The  sixth  strophe  is  then  usually  sung  as  the  conclusion. 

HOFFMANN. — I  fill  the  glasses,  and  then  let  us  sound  a  still 
greater  Lumpitus. 

HOFFMANN —    My  brethren,  when  no  more  I'm  drinking, 
But  faint  with  gout  and  palsy  lie, 
Exhausted  on  the  death-bed  sinking, 
Believe  it  then,  my  end  is  nigh.         [Repeated  as  a  Chorus. 

FREISLEBEN —   A  lordly  life  the  Pope  doth  hold, 
He  lives  on  absolution  gold; 
The  best  of  wines  still  drinkethhe — 
The  Pope,  the  Pope  I  fain  would  be. 

VON«KRONEN —  Brothers  !  in  this  place  of  festive  meeting, 
God  in  goodness  hath  us  thus  combined ; 
Let  us  every  trouble  now  defeating, 
Drink  here  with  the  friend  of  honest  mind. 
There,  where  nectar  glows — Valleralla ! 
Sweetest  pleasure  blows — Valleralla ! 
E'en  as  flowers  when  the  spring  hath  sinned. 

PITTSCHAFT —  So  crown  with  leaves  the  love-o'erbrimming  beakers. 
And  drain  them  o'er  and  o'er ; 
And  drain  them  o'er  and  o'er; 
In  Europe  far  and  wide,  ye  pleasure  seekers, — 
Is  such  a  wine  no  more ! 
Is  such  a  wine  no  more ! 
Is  such  a  wine  no  more ! 
Is  such  a  wine  no  more ! 

ENDERLIN —      Ca,  93,  carouse  it ! 

Let  us  not  fiery-heads  become ; — 
Who  won't  here  now  sit, 
Let  him  stay  at  home! 

Edite  bibite,  collegiales 

Post  multa  secula,  pocula  nulla! 

MR.  TRAVELLER  sings  "  The  Old  English  Gentleman." 
21* 


246  THE  STUDENT'S 

ECKHARD —      God  greet  thee,  Brother  Straubinger, 

I'm  glad  to  meet  thee,  tho-ough; 
Perhaps  it  is  unknown  to  thee, 

That  from  Heidelberg  I  go-o. 
The  master  and  the  misteress, 

Of  them  I  cant  complai-en ; 
But  with  these  gents,  the  studi-ents, 

No  mortal  can  conta-ien 

CHORUS. —        The  master  and  the  misteress,  etc. 

Hoffmann,  in  the  mean  time,  had  seated  himself  at  the  harp- 
sichord, and  drew  a  quodlibet  from  the  most  varied  Burschen 
songs,  leaping  from  one  to  the  other,  and  interweaving  phan- 
tasy-pieces between  them.  The  platform  in  the  chamber  ena- 
bled the  company  to  sing  the  Bavarian  Folks'-song,  "The 
Binschgauer."  One  chorus  placed  itself  on  the  platform  with 
the  punch-glasses,  the  other  remained  by  the  steaming  bowl. 
Hoffmann  accompanied  them  on  the  harpsichord. 


THE  BINSCHGAUER'S  PILGRIMAGE. 

The  Binschgauer  would  a  pilgrimage  go, 
Fain  would  they  go  singing,  but  how  they  did  not  know, 
Zschahi!  Zschahe  !  Zschaho!  etc.  etc. 

The  Binschgauer  have  got  there, 
Now  take  heed  that  ev'ry  one  his  knapsack  bear, 
Zschahi !  Zschahe  !  Zschaho  !  etc.  etc. 

The  Binschgauer  far  from  their  homescenes  have  gone ; 
They  saw  many  cities,  and  far  around  were  known. 
Zschahi,  Zschahe,  Zschaho !  etc.  etc. 

The  Binschgauer  long  through  joy  and  sorrow  run, 
Till  high  the  holy  pinnacles  glanced  i'  the  evening  sun. 
Zschahi,  Zschahe,  Zschaho !  etc.  etc. 

The  Binschgauer  wended  about  that  dome  renowned, 
The  vane-staff  was  broken,  yet  still  the  vane  turned  round. 
Zschahi,  Zschahe,  Zschaho !  etc.  etc. 


EVENING  PARTY.  247 

The  Binschgauer  entered  the  holy  dome  within, 
The  saints  were  all  asleep,  and  woke  not  with  their  din. 
Zschahi,  Zschahe,  Zschaho !  etc.  etc. 


The  song  was  ended.  The  company  became  continnally 
more  jovial,  and  began,  on  the  platform,  to  dance  a  most 
singular  quadrille,  to  which  their  musician  played  on  the 
harpsichord  in  the  most  extraordinary  style.  Von  Kronen,  of  a 
tall  and  strong  figure,  stood  there  exactly  as  if  he  had  been 
turned  in  wood,  but  an  electrical  stream  seemed  to  run  now 
through  this,  and  now  through  that  limb,  and  twitched  him 
hither  and  thither.  His  motions  were  those  of  a  puppet  which 
is  drawn  by  strings  attached  to  every  member.  When  the 
dance  was  become  right  wild,  then  darted  he  suddenly  for- 
wards, so  that  no  one  knew  whence  the  movement  came,  and 
all  squandered  in  astonishment.  His  partner,  the  little  En- 
derlin,*  made  a  graceful  spring,  and,  as  the  tall  fellow  stretched 
wide  his  legs,  darted  boldly  between  them,  and  then  danced 
round  him  with  the  newest  steps.  The  other  dancers  had 
again  seized  each  other's  hands,  and  made  such  a  desperate 
leap  that  they  sprang  almost  to  the  top  of  the  room.  The 
music  rushed  on  more  wildly — the  dance  grew  madder  and 
madder,  and  with  more  ringing  laughter  of  the  spectators,  as 
the  pair,  suddenly  making  a  high  side  spring,  sent  a  pane  of 
glass  from  the  window  jingling  down  into  the  street.  Great 
snow-flakes  came  whirling  into  the  room  through  their  new- 
made  way.  "  It  struck  two  !"  cried  several  voices.  "  It  is 
time  to  break  up !"  exclaimed  others.  All  prepared  themselves 
for  departure,  even  the  host  himself,  who  would  accompany 
his  guests  a  little  way. 

The  glasses  were  emptied — "  To  a  speedy  and  as  happy  an 
evening  !"  and  the  farewell  cigars  lit. 

The  wind  without  had  laid  itself,  but  the  snow-flakes  chased 
each  other  rapidly  through  the  air,  and  a  deep  snow  covered 
the  silent  streets.  In  a  few  moments  the  merry  home-goers 
were  clad  in  a  thick  covering  of  snow ;  and  being  once  thus 
besnowed,  they  separated  themselves  into  two  parties,  and 


248  THE  STUDENT'S 

began  to  bombard  each  other  with  snowballs.  One  party 
prevailed  and  put  the  other  into  flight.  The  fleers  espied  a 
Bauer's  sledge;  one  jumped  in,  the  other  two  seized  its  pole, 
and  thus  rushed  rapidly  along  the  Hauptstrasse,  pursued  by  the 
other  party  with  snowballs.  When  they  now  reached  one  of 
the  principal  squares,  the  madcap  chase  came  to  an  end.  The 
sledge  remained  standing  in  the  square  to  the  amazement  of 
the  Bauer,  who  the  next  morning,  after  much  hunting,  found  it 
there. 

Now  sounded  a  general  "  good-night,"  and  every  one  has- 
tened home.  Hoffmann  reached  his  chamber,  which  filled  him 
with  that  feeling  of  desolation,  so  often  felt  in  places  which  a 
moment  before  were  all  alive  with  the  presence  of  those  we 
love.  But  the  delightful  consciousness  of  having  enjoyed  an 
evening  to  the  uttermost,  the  still  more  delightful  consciousness 
of  having  afforded  such  an  one  to  his  friends,  absorbed  all 
other  thoughts.  He  called  to  mind  again  the  good  wishes  of 
his  friends,  and  his  last  thoughts  in  the  night  were,  "  May 
God,  if  he  denies  me  every  thing  else,  never,  to  my  life's  end, 
deprive  me  of  the  sense  which  renders  me  capable  of  enjoying 
worthily  such  delightful  hours." 

DRINKING  SONG. 

Ye  brothers,  when  no  more  I'm  drinking, 

But  faint  with  gout  and  palsy  lie, 
Exhausted  on  the  sick  bed  sinking, 

Believe  it  then,  my  end  is  nigh. 

And  die  I  this  day  or  to-morrow, 

My  testament's  already  made; 
My  fun'ral  from  your  care  I'll  borrow, 

But  without  splendour  or  parade. 

And  as  for  coffin,  that  remanding, 

A  Rhenish  cask  for  it  shall  pass; 
Instead  of  lemon  placed  each  hand  in, 

Give  me  a  brimfull  Deckel-glass. 


EVENING  PARTY.  249 

Into  the  cellar  then  convey  me, 
Where  I  have  drunk  whole  hogsheads  dry ; 

With  head  unto  the  tap  then  lay  me, 
My  feet  towards  the  wall  may  Jie. 

And  when  you're  to  the  grave  me  bringing, 

As  follow  all  then,  man  by  man ; 
For  God's  sake  let  no  bell  be  ringing, 

And  clinking  glasses  be  your  plan. 

Upon  my  gravestone  be  inscribed, 

This  man  was  born,  grew,  drank,  and  died, — 

And  now  he  rests  where  he  imbibed 
In  lifelong  joy,  the  purple  tide. 


THE  POPE. 

A  lordly  life  the  Pope  doth  hold, 
He  lives  on  absolution  gold ; 
The  best  of  wines  still  drinketh  he ; 
The  Pope,  the  Pope  I  fain  would  be. 

But  no!  'tis  but, a  wretched  lot, 
A  German  maiden  loves  him  not. 
Alone  in  his  great  house  lives  he — 
The  Pope,  the  Pope,  I  would  not  be. 

The  Sultan  lives  full  blithe  and  crowse, 
He  liveth  in  a  golden  house, 
With  lovely  ladies  liveth  he — 
The  Sultan  then  I  fain  would  be. 

But  no !  he  is  a  wretched  man, 
He  liveth  by  the  Alcoran. 
No  drop  of  wine  may  drink — not  he  ; 
The  Sultan  then  I  will  not  be. 

Their  separate  fortunes,  howe'er  fine, 
I'd  wish  not,  for  one  moment,  mine, 
But  would  to  this  right  glad  agree, 
Now  Pope,  now  Sultanus  to  be. 


250  THE  STUDENT'S 

Come,  lovely  maiden,  yield  a  kiss, 
For  this  my  reign  as  Sultan  is. 
And  faithful  brother  send  a  fee, 
For  now  I  choose  the  Pope  to  be. 


DRINKING  SONG. 

Brothers !  in  this  place  of  festive  meeting, 
Let  us  every  trouble  now  defeating, 
God,  in  goodness,  hath  us  thus  combined  ; 
Drink  here  with  the  friend  of  honest  mind. 

There,  where  nectar  flows, 

Sweetest  pleasure  blows, 
E'en  as  flowers  when  the  spring  hath  shined. 

Golden  time !  oh  revel  we  it  through, 

Hanging  on  the  friend's  devoted  breast ; 
From  the  friend  a  blissful  warmth  we'll  borrow; 
Of  our  pleasure  cool  in  wine  the  zest 
In  the  grape's  pure  blood, 
Drink  we  German  mood, 
Feel  we  of  a  higher  strength  possessed. 

Sip  ye  not  when  Bacchus'  fountain  floweth, 

With  full  beakers  to  lips  faintly  bent; 
He  who  life  by  drops  yet  only  knoweth, 
Knoweth  not  of  life  the  full  intent. 
Lift  it  to  thy  mouth, 
Drain  it  in  thy  drouth, 
For  a  God  from  heaven  it  hath  sent. 

On  the  spirit's  light  accustomed  pinion, 

In  the  world  the  youngling  plunges  bold ; 
Friends  to  win  him,  as  his  best  dominion, 
And  whom  fast  and  faster  he  will  hold. 
So  remain  mine  all, 
Till  the  world  shall  fall ; 
Round  their  friend  truth's  arms  eternal  fold. 


EVENING  PARTY.  251 

Let  ye  not  the  strength  of  youth  be  wasted ; 
In  the  wine-cup  doth  the  gold-star  shine ; 
From  sweet  lips  be  honeyed  sweetness  tasted, 
For  of  life  is  love  the  heart  divine. 
Is  the  strength  gone  forth  1 
Lose  the  wine  its  worth  1 
Follow  we,  old  Charon,  nor  repine. 


RHINE-WINE. 

So,  crown  with  leaves  the  love  o'er-brimming  beakers, 

And  drain  them  o'er  and  o'er, 
In  Europe  far  and  wide,  ye  pleasure-seekers, 

Is  such  a  wine  no  more ! 

It  comes  not  out  of  Hungary  nor  Poland. 

Nor  where  they  French  do  speak. 
St.  Vitus,  he  may  fetch  wine  from  such  wo-land, 

Ours  there  we  do  not  seek. 

It  is  from  Fatherland's  abundance  rendered, 

How  were  it  else  so  good  ! 
How  could  in  it  such  noble  peace  be  blended, 

And  yet  such  bravest  mood ! 

Yet  it  grows  not  upon  all  German  mountains ; 

For  many  hills  we  trace, 
Like  the  old  Cretans,  dull  and  sluggish  fountains, 

Which  are  not  worth  their  space. 

The  Ertzgebirge,  ye  need  not  explore  there, 

If  wine  ye  would  behold  ; 
Thiice  spring  but  silver  and  the  cobalt  ore  there, 

And  mischief-making  gold. 

Thiiringia's  mountains,  for  example,  bringing, 

A  growth  which  looks  like  wine, 
Bat  it  is  not ;  o'er  that  there  is  no  singing, 

No  glad  eyes  round  it  shine. 


252         THE  STUDENT'S  EVENING  PARTY. 

The  Blocksberg  is  the  lengthy  Sir  Philister, 

As  windy  and  as  drear ; 
Dance  the  cuckoo  and  his  wild  sacrister, 

Upon  him  here  and  there. 

The  Rhine !  the  Rhine !  'tis  there  our  vines  are  growing ! 

O  blessed  be  the  Rhine  ! 
The  slopes  by  which  that  noble  stream  is  flowing 

They  give  this  precious  wine. 

So  drink !  so  drink  !  let  us  all  methods  trying, 

For  joyous  hours  combine. 
And  if  we  knew  where  one  in  wo  were  lying 

We'd  give  him  of  this  wine ! 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

GENERAL  SYSTEM  OF  GERMAN  EDUCATION. 

ALL  our  educational  institutions  form,  of  many  members,  an 
existing  ring,  which  embraces  the  inhabitants  of  Germany  so 
thoroughly,  that  every  one  of  them  must,  according  to  his  sta- 
tion and  capacity,  receive  the  benefit  of  a  humane  education. 
The  university  beams  on  this  ring  like  a  noble  jewel  set  in  gold, 
and  while  it  closes  the  ring,  as  the  noblest  member  of  the  whole, 
it  touches  again  on  the  commencing  portion,  over  which  its 
beneficent  splendour  shall  be  diffused.  So  Mr.  Traveller  re- 
garded these  institutions,  and  regarded  them  therefore  with 
approval  and  admiration.  Von  Kronen,  who  had  already 
delivered  to  him  a  short  history  of  the  universities,  promised  to 
give  him  a  brief  notice  of  the  general  German  educational  sys- 
tem, which  he  had  prepared,  at  another  opportunity : — and  here 
it  is. 

A  glance  into  the  evolution  periods  of  the  continually  ascend- 
ing spiritual  and  material  interests  of  an  age;  a  glance  at  the 
state  of  improvement  even  of  this  time,  and  our  latest  posterity, 
must  unite  in  the  judgment, — with  truth  was  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury called  "  the  enlightened!"  The  spirit  of  man  lies  no  longer 
in  a  lethargic  sleep ;  the  nations  of  the  tempus  novi  appear  no 
more  the  slaves  of  superstition  and  of  absurdity ;  manhood  feels 
its  worth  ;  discerns  its  destiny ;  and  strains  towards  the  highest 
limit, — towards  an  ennobled  humane  accomplishment,  with  all 
that  strength  which  nature  so  affluently  pours  out  upon  it.  Art 
and  science  embrace  with  giant  arms  the  awakened  spirit  of 
man ;  they  will  be,  and  they  are  become,  the  common  property ; 

22 


254  GENERAL  SYSTEM  OF 

and  every  one  seeks  to  make  himself  a  partaker  of  them,  ac- 
cording to  the  measure  of  his  individual  ability.  Trade  and  com- 
merce flourish  ;  the  activity  of  the  common  man,  of  the  greater 
part  of  mankind,  has  therethrough  acquired  a  nobler  direction. 
Increasing  population  brings  new  necessities ;  and  these,  again, 
elicit  a  zealous  wrestling  for  the  means  of  satisfying  them, 
whereby  the  spirit  of  man  sees  itself  compelled  continually  to  a 
persistence  in  the  most  strenuous  activity.  And  does  not  all 
this  contribute  to  a  perpetually  advancing  improvement  of  our 
human  heart  and  mind  most  essentially? — Does  a  thistle  here  and 
there  thrive  amongst  the  wheat?  still  the  field  is  well  cultivated, 
and  the  farmer  knows  very  well  how  to  separate  it  from  the 
crop. 

If  we  seek  now  the  ground,  the  cause,  of  the  condition  of  our 
time  in  all  its  connexions,  we  find  the  germ  laid  in  the  primor- 
dial point  of  union  of  every  kind  of  cultivation — in  education 
and  instruction.  Where  and  at  what  time  has  more  been  done 
for  the  education  of  the  people  than  now  ?  Where  and  when 
have  the  Folk's-schools,  those  primary  institutions  for  the  ac- 
complishment of  manhood,  acquired  a  higher  and  more  beautiful 
position  than  at  present?  This  interesting  circumstance  we  shall 
observe  somewhat  more  closely  in  these  pages. 

Perhaps  nowhere  can  a  close  inquiry  into  the  innermost 
essence  of  a  thing  be  more  entwined  with  the  historical  deve- 
lopement  of  the  same,  than  exactly  here,  when  treating  of  schools, 
and  their  peculiar  conduct  and  condition ;  and  although  it  is  by 
no  means  our  intention  to  give  here  a  regular  history  of  such 
developement,  yet  we  cannot  avoid  casting  a  hasty  retrospec- 
tive glance  on  the  schools  of  a  former  age,  since  we  shall  there- 
by, on  the  one  hand,  most  securely  arrive  at  the  position  whence 
we  can,  as  already  observed,  best  learn  to  judge  properly  and 
perfectly  of  the  nature  of  Folk's-schools;  and,  on  the  other  hand, 
learn  best  to  know  the  real  rank  of  the  schools  of  our  times,  and 
to  prize  their  advantages.  "  The  world's  history  is  the  world's 
judgment,"  said  Schiller,  and  certainly  he  therein  pronounced  an 
important  truth,  of  which  truth  where  do  we  find  a  more  evi- 
dent testimony  than  here,  where  the  most  momentous  portion  of 


GERMAN  EDUCATION.  255 

the  intellectual  cultivation  of  the  human  race  is  concerned  ?   But 
to  come  to  the  matter. 

In  far  antiquity  education  was  the  business  of  domestic  life  ; 
and  how  imperfect  it  was,  under  such  circumstances,  we  may 
easily  conceive.  The  parents,  uninformed  themselves,  could 
impart  to  their  children  but  very  scanty  information  ;  the  whole 
of  life  was  rather  a  vegetation,  a  physical  rather  than  an  inward 
and  intellectual  existence.  It  was  then  first,  as  population  in- 
creased and  state  compacts  were  organized,  that  a  kind  of 
schools  arose,  because  men  then  learned  to  see  that  it  was  only 
by  intellectual  ascendency  that  it  was  possible  to  work  upon  the 
rude  mass.  The  teachers  of  such  schools  were  the  priests ;  but 
the  scholars  were  such  alone  as,  according  to  their  custom,  were 
destined  to  some  high  office.  We  thus  see  that  real  Folk's 
schools  were  not  then  in  existence ;  there  was,  in  fact,  no  con- 
ception of  them ;  and  what  more  was  necessary  to  say  on  the 
subject  of  the  schools  of  former  ages,  we  have  already  given 
under  the  head,  Universities.  Those  institutions  were  calculated 
rather  for  the  higher  range  of  education,  and  are  to  be  regarded 
as  the  forerunners  of  our  universities,  on  which  account  we 
may  here  pass  them  over. 

It  is  only  with  the  time  of  Charlemagne  that  we  can  begin 
to  talk  of  Folk's-education  and  Folk's-schools.  Besides  the  Scola 
Palatii,  founded  by  him,  and  which  was  placed  under  the  ma- 
nagement of  his  friend  Alcuin,  he  also  originated  and  promoted 
in  the  convents  the  idea  of  a  female  education.  He  and  Alfred 
of  England  are  the  true  founders  of  village  and  country  schools. 
National  education  owes  to  them  an  improvement  the  most  ex- 
cellent and  rich  with  blessings ;  alas !  that  the  age  was  not  ripe 
enough  to  give  a  ready  hand  of  co-operation  to  these  noble  re- 
formers. Before  this  time,  ay,  from  the  very  promulgation  of  the 
Christian  religion,  the  priests  had  striven  incessantly  to  monopo- 
lise the  instruction  of  the  people,  and  to  throw  it  entirely  into 
the  hands  of  their  order ;  a  fact  most  prominently  testified  by 
the  catechetical  schools  of  the  second  and  third  centuries,  the 
later  episcopal  and  cathedral  schools,  and,  after  the  sixth  cen- 
tury, those  most  influential  cloister  schools.  And  as  it  had  thus 


256  GENERAL  SYSTEM  OF 

been  their  constant  policy  to  secure  the  absolute  possession  and 
direction  of  popular  instruction,  this  became  the  case  again,  after 
the  death  of  these  noble  monarchs,  when  every  thing  had  fallen 
once  more  into  the  old  track,  and  these  very  institutions,  which 
they  had  planned  and  founded,  became  still  more  effectual  tools 
in  their  hands.  What  might  and  would  result  from  such  a  pre- 
dominating hierarchical  tendency,  experience  has  taught  us.  The 
selfish  interests  of  a  form  of  religion,  degraded  to  the  most  crafty 
state-policy,  were  made  the  motives  for  keeping  mankind  in 
darkness.  The  understanding  was  oppressed  by  the  diffusion 
of  superstition  ;  and  under  the  hypocritical  cloak  of  sanctity, 
beneath  which  the  most  unhallowed  fanaticism  concealed  itself, 
the  priesthood  compelled  humanity  to  wander  on  in  blindness 
and  error.  The  reforms  of  Charlemagne  were  as  good  as  for- 
gotten, and  the  proper  Folk's-schools  were  swallowed  up  in  the 
darkness  of  the  Middle  Ages.  What  was  done  in  course  of  time 
through  the  exertions  of  such  men  as  the  Emperor  Frederick  I. 
took  the  direction  of  the  high  educational  institutions,  and  wholly 
concerned  the  universities,  which  had  for  a  long  period  been 
striving  to  make  themselves  independent,  and,  in  fact,  were  so. 
In  the  fourteenth  century  a  ruddy  streak  of  dawn  showed  itself, 
which  though  but  faintly  pervading  the  darkness,  yet  at  a  later 
period  harbingered  the  sun.  Gerhardus  Magnus  first  spoke  out 
the  idea  of  a  free  education  with  perspicuity.  In  1379  he 
founded  an  educational  institution  at  Deventer,  in  this  spirit, 
and  thereby  led  to  the  creation  of  similar  institutions  in  the 
Netherlands,  on  the  Rhine,  and  in  North  Germany.  Montaigne, 
Bacon,  and  Lord  Verulam,  were  powerful  advocates  of  this  idea, 
which,  being  only  more  and  more  stimulated  by  the  reaction- 
system  of  the  hierarchy,  lead  to  the  epoch  of  the  fifteenth  cen- 
tury. 

The  well-to-do  Burger-class  began  to  erect  city-corporation, 
or  writing-schools,  as  they  were  called,  and  found  themselves 
obliged  to  appoint  masters  to  them  at  their  own  cost,  as  the 
clergy  more  and  more  neglected  their  office  of  teaching.  The 
clergy,  however,  exerted  all  their  power  against  these  schools, 
on  grounds  which  touched  them  nearly,  for  they  feared  a  dimi- 


GERMAN  EDUCATION.  257 

nution  of  their  income  and  their  power  through  a  greater  en- 
lightenment of  the  people.  Under  these  circumstances  the 
Folk's-schools  could  not  prosper;  they  either  fell  speedily,  or 
totally  degenerated.  The  city-schools  which  were  founded  in 
the  sixteenth  century,  and  called  Latin-schools,  were  scantily 
enough  endowed,  and  the  proper  Folk's-schools  were  in  a  still 
more  miserable  condition  most  of  those  in  the  villages  falling  to 
decay,  and  those  which  did  still  exist  scarcely  being  worthy  of 
the  name. 

But  the  dawn  of  a  new  era  soon  broke,  and  the  arduous  and 
holy  warfare  of  the  Reformation  threw  light  into  the  darkness 
of  the  human  mind.  Men  were  now  seen  to  contend  for 
knowledge,  and  strove  to  rend  asunder  the  dishonourable  bonds 
which,  in  a  more  animal  condition,  had  been  riveted  upon 
them.  Luther  arose,  and  with  him  a  new  order  of  things  in 
the  conduct  of  schools  was  called  forth.  Many  worthy  school- 
masters, who  had  already  gone  forth  from  the  pedagogic  bro- 
therhood of  Gerhard  us  Magnus  at  De  venter,  and  from  the 
Rhenish  Society  of  Learned  Men,  founded  by  Conrad  Celtes 
for  the  restoration  of  classical  antiquity,  had  prepared  the  way 
for  the  great  Reformers.  How  illustriously  shine  out  in  the 
fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries  the  names  of  Desiderius  Eras- 
mus, Johann  Reuchlin,  Johann  Dalberg,  Rudolph  Agricola, 
Wilibald  Pirkheimer.  They  are  like  sacred  signs  of  an  ap- 
proaching better  time  for  the  school  affairs  of  the  civilized 
world ;  and  they  all  strengthened  powerfully  the  hands  of 
Luther,  Melancthon,  Zuinglius,  since  they  treated  schools,  and 
the  whole  business  of  education,  in  a  magnanimous  spirit.  To 
point  out  the  active  services  of  these  men  would  lead  us  too 
far;  it  must  suffice  simply  to  remark  that  continually  more,, 
and  fresh,  and  faithful  teachers  came  forth,  amongst  whom, 
Johann  Sturm,  Valentin  Friedland,  also  called  Trotzendorf, 
Michael  Neander,  Johann  Casselius,  and  Christian  Hellwich, 
were  especially  distinguished.  If  a  great  want  was  still  here 
and  there  visible,  yet  the  path  being  once  broken  open,  a  retreat 
was  by  no  means  to  be  thought  of,  and  the  discovery  of  Gutten- 
berg  contributed  not  a  little  to  make  this  impossible.  The 

22* 


258  GENERAL  SYSTEM  OF 

labours  of  Wolfgang  Ratich  and  Johann  Amors  Comenius  are 
of  peculiar  importance,  whose  works  are  known,  and  in  which 
they  treat  of  the  natural  and  complete  developement  of  all  the 
powers  of  the  human  mind,  especially  of  the  understanding  and 
the  imagination.  Pestalozzi's  ideas  here  lie  in  embryo  before  us. 

Soon  after  the  appearance  of  these  men,  and  the  springing 
up  of  schools  framed  according  to  their  views,  the  Jesuits  made 
every  exertion  to  draw  the  management  of  education  to  them- 
selves ;  and  they  succeeded  to  a  certain  extent,  since  with  their 
usual  political  acumen,  they  easily  saw  that  it  was  necessary 
for  them  entirely  to  imitate  the  form  and  matter  of  the  evan- 
gelical schools.  But  the  stratagem  of  these  satellites  of  the 
hierarchy  was  soon  seen  through,  and  the  best  consequences 
were  to  be  hoped,  had  not  the  storms  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War 
crushed  so  many  promising  germs  and  scattered  so  much  beau- 
tiful fruit.  School  economy,  during  such  an  epoch,  could  only 
wearily  maintain  itself;  the  miserable  management  of  ignorant 
teachers,  the  simple  consequence  of  that  fanatical  rage,  made 
the  prosperity  of  schools  a  thing  beyond  hope.  Yet  this  re- 
action actually  hastened  the  entrance  of  a  better  spirit,  which 
soon  found  its  warmest  advocates  in  Fenelon,  Ph.  T.  Spener, 
but  especially  in  A.  H.  Franke. 

The  activity  of  the  last  worthy  man  had  an  eminently  auspi- 
cious influence;  and  other  zealous  characters  soon  enrolled 
themselves  in  the  list  of  the  friends  of  knowledge  ;  as  Godfried 
Zeidler,  who  simplified  the  mode  of  spelling;  Valentin  Hein, 
and  Sulzer,  who,  1700 — 1799,  introduced  an  improved  mode  of 
teaching  arithmetic.  But,  unfortunately,  there  soon  grew  in  the 
Folk's-schools  a  deadly  poison  of  all  good — Mysticism,  which 
was  carried  by  the  teachers  to  a  most  mischievous  length. 
Equally  blighting  lay  the  pharisaical  constraint  of  evangelical 
orthodoxy  on  the  school  system,  not  less  influentially  than  that 
of  the  Romish  hierarchy.  It  was  not  till  philanthropy  raised 
its  head  in  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century,  through  the 
influence  of  Locke,  Rousseau,  and  Bassedow,  that  the  school 
system  appeared  earnestly  to  seek  to  improve  itself.  Locke 
was  the  first  to  treat  with  a  philosophical  spirit  educational 


GERMAN  EDUCATION.  259 

tuition,  as  a  connected  whole.  T.  P.  Crousatz  followed  in  the 
same  path.  In  Germany,  the  fiery  Bassedow,  in  1768,  took  up 
the  Rousseau  enthusiasm,  and  sought  to  plant  the  ideas  of  this 
philosopher  in  his  native  soil. 

We  imagine  that  we  have  so  far  conducted  the  reader  that 
he  can  easily  follow  the  description  of  the  institutions  for 
popular  education  of  our  time.  We  have  arrived  at  the  posi- 
tion we  recently  alluded  to,  and  have  with  it  reached  also,  that 
exact  point  of  union  whence  all  that  succeeds  diverges.  Al- 
though it  yet  remains  to  be  shown  how  the  various  kinds  of 
schools  have  gradually  developed  themselves,  we  believe  we 
may  pass  over  this  part  of  the  subject,  as  on  the  one  hand  all 
that  is  necessary  may  be  inferred  from  what  has  just  been  said, 
and  on  the  other,  they  are  too  much  a  part  of  the  present  not  to 
be  well  known  to  all.  Let  us  therefore  proceed  to  an  illustra- 
tion -of  the  system  of  our  Folk's-schools,  which  divide  them- 
selves into  higher  and  lower ;  and  in  the  first  place  notice  the 
lower,  as 

THE  ELEMENTARY,  OR  PROPER  FOLK's-SCHOOLS . 

In  matters  of  school  economy,  the  Catholics  in  Germany 
continued  far  behind  the  Protestants,  because  they  cherished 
the  notion  that  diffusion  of  knowledge  amongst  the  people  wras 
dangerous  to  the  state ;  and  therefore  most  carefully  cut  off  all 
possible  opportunities  for  advancing  popular  instruction;  whereas 
the  Protestants,  on  the  contrary,  from  the  last  half  of  the  eigh- 
teenth century,  spared  no  sacrifice  for  the  promotion  of  such  an 
object.  Such  men  as  Campe,  Salzmann,  Trapp,  rendered  ser- 
vices to  instruction  in  a  more  restricted  sense,  since  they  began 
to  reduce  the  science  of  tuition  to  a  system ;  but  Rochou  was 
the  first  who  undertook,  in  the  spirit  of  philanthropy,  to  work  a 
genuine  reformation  in  the  Folk's-schools.  Then  appeared 
Pestalozzi,  who  grounded  education  on  the  natural  developernent 
of  the  powers  and  capacities  themselves.  His  system,  which 
proved  its  worth  in  the  severe  trials  that  it  underwent  in  the 
hands  of  Tillich,  Plaman,  Schwartz,  Ewald,  Turk,  Ladomus, 


260  GENERAL  SYSTEM  OF 

Herbert,  Zeller,  Harnisch,  Kant,  Fichte,  Schelling,  Jean  Paul, 
Arndt,  Pcelitz,  Stephani,  Dinter,  and  others,  found,  by  degrees, 
general  acceptance ;  and  our  present  school  system  may  with 
perfect  justice  be  styled  the  Pestalozzian.  But  for  the  necessary 
preparatory  education  of  teachers  themselves,  earnest  care  was 
soon  taken,  and  a  great  number  of  school-teacher  seminaries 
were  founded,  in  which  this  class  of  men  must  study  and 
qualify  themselves,  and  which  to  them  must  stand  in  the  same 
relation  as  the  universities  to  the  professors  of  scientific  and 
general  knowledge.  By  these  means  the  general  improvement  of 
the  business  of  education  experienced  only  accelerating  circum- 
stances; and  now  even  Catholic  countries,  particularly  those 
in  which  many  Protestants  dwell,  ceased  to  hang  back,  and 
there  is  now  scarcely  a  place  in  Germany  which  does  not  pos- 
sess a  school;  scarcely  a  state  whose  government  has  not 
thrown  out  a  plan  of  education  more  or  less  adapted  to  its  end. 
Yes;  foreign  nations  themselves  now  acknowledge  the  pre- 
eminence of  Germany  in  school  economy. 

On  a  closer  inquiry  into  the  organization  of  these  proper 
Folk's-schools,  the  great  variety  of  the  same  however  strikes 
us,  and  we  cannot  here  omit  to  notice  a  circumstance  which  is 
of  the  most  essential  importance.  In  many — yes,  in  most  of 
the  country  schools,  are  the  school  establishments  subdivided 
according  to  the  different  confessions  of  faith ;  and  this  circum- 
stance extends  itself  even  to  the  schools  of  the  smallest  villages. 
Although  the  greater  part  of  these  are  placed  under  the  juris- 
diction of  a  High  Board,  and  are  formed,  more  or  less,  on  a 
common  plan,  yet  the  disadvantage  is  not  to  be  denied,  which 
must  necessarily  result  from  such  a  system  of  subdivision.  We 
have  observed  above  how  much  all  Catholic  countries  lay 
behind  in  popular  enlightenment,  which  alone  flourishes  through 
popular  instruction ;  and  we  must,  we  regret  to  say,  remark 
that  this  sorrowful  experience  again  manifests  itself  as  an  attri- 
bute of  these  aforesaid  school  institutions.  How  very  different 
is  it  in  the  Protestant  schools!  If  unlimited  freedom  of  teach- 
ing is  given  to  those  as  well  as  these,  yet  the  opinions  taught 
are  very  different,  and  the  consequences  of  an  ail-too  scrupulous 


GERMAN  EDUCATION.  261 

observation  of  dogmatic  forms,  not  the  most  agreeable,  are  seen 
in  the  Catholic  schools.  On  the  contrary,  the  Protestant  schools 
follow,  free  from  constraint,  every  direction  of  the  mind,  and  the 
foundation  of  a  philosophical  system  is  here  first  discernible. 

In  strong  contradistinction  to  both  these,  stand  the  so-called 
Communal-schools,  as  those  which  are  intended  for  children  of 
each  denomination.  These  schools,  wherever  they  exist,  exert 
the  most  beneficent  influence  on  the  people.  The  foundation 
pillars  of  all  human  happiness,  Tolerance  and  Intelligence,  find 
here  the  securest  guarantees  for  their  enduring  existence;  since, 
however  much  men  have  striven  or  may  strive  to  counteract 
them,  it  continues  still  incontestably  true,  that  the  first  impres- 
sions on  the  minds  of  children  are  the  most  vivid  and  permanent, 
and  the  spirit  in  later  years  of  life  pursues  its  course  in  accord- 
ance with  such  impressions.  It  requires  no  demonstration  to 
show  *how  rich  in  blessings  is  such  a  school  system ;  and  the 
reader  will  excuse  us  turning  now  to  a  further  pursuit  of  our 
theme. 

It  is  particularly  to  be  observed,  that  various  attempts  have 
been  made  to  extend  these  school  regulations  so  far  as  to  allow 
boys  and  girls  to  be  taught  altogether  in  one  and  the  same  class. 
Such  experiments  were,  however,  for  the  most  part  confined  to 
such  places  where  the  circumstances  entirely  permitted  their 
trial,  which  was  only  here  and  there ;  and  such  school  disposi- 
tions yet  exist.  But  generally,  the  instruction  is  given  to  boys 
and  girls  in  one  building,  but  in  separate  rooms. 

Before  we  cast  a  glance  at  the  mode  of  school  tuition,  we  will 
passingly  remark,  that  in  most  German  towns  there  are,  besides 
the  proper  Folk's-schools,  many  establishments  for  boys  and 
girls,  as  well  for  elementary  as  for  more  complete  education. 
These  stand,  however,  in  no  connexion  with  the  Folk's-schools, 
and  do  not  profess  in  the  slightest  degree  to  employ  the  same 
machinery.  Yet  these  educational  establishments  in  the  present 
time  deserve  so  much  attention,  that  to  say  only  what  is  barely 
necessary  upon  them  would  lead  us  too  far. 

The  subjects  of  instruction  in  the  Folk's-schools  are  these : 
reading,  writing,  arithmetic,  geography,  natural  history,  history; 


262  GENERAL  SYSTEM  OF 

in  the  higher  classes,  mathematics,  geometry;  instruction  in  the 
German  language ; — extended  also  to  a  higher  style  of  penman- 
ship, drawing,  and  music,  seldom  more  than  choral  singing,  and 
instruction  in  religion,  which  last  is  not  given  by  the  teachers 
but  by  the  pastors  of  the  respective  faiths. 

When  each  branch  of  education  has  not  its  individual  teacher 
appointed  in  these  schools,  the  charge  of  such  instruction  is 
consigned  to  a  teacher  expressly  qualified  for  it.  Mistresses 
are  also  appointed  for  the  girls,  as  well  to  teach  them  the  ordi- 
nary school  branches,  as  hand-work.  Of  this  organization, 
however,  the  schools  only  of  the  larger  cities  can  boast  them- 
selves. In  most  of  the  German  towns,  the  parents  are  obliged 
to  send  their  children  into  the  schools  from  their  sixth  year.  If 
they  wish  to  give  to  their  children  an  education  in  another  place, 
more  particularly  if  they  would  have  them  privately  educated, 
or  would  send  them  to  some  particular  institution,  they  must  for 
that  purpose  ask  permission  of  the  proper  Board.  On  the  part 
of  persons  of  high  position,  or  of  great  property,  this  is  very  fre- 
quently the  case,  but  they  are  seldom  on  this  account  exempt 
from  the  payment  of  the  school  impost,  as  this  defrays  part  of 
the  expense  of  the  system,  and  has,  therefore,  to  be  well  looked 
after  by  government. 

The  schools  are  divided  into  classes,  according  to  the  respec- 
tive studies ;  that  is,  into  systematic  divisions,  according  to  the 
circumstances  of  the  increasing  evolutions  of  the  subjects  of 
study.  No  age  qualifies  a  child  to  advance  into  a  higher  class, 
but  capacity  and  acquirement  alone.  And  in  order  to  give  to 
the  parents  an  account  of  the  activity  of  the  school  system,  as 
well  as  of  the  acquirements  of  the  scholars  in  particular,  annual 
examinations  are  held  publicly,  in  which  what  has  been  taught 
and  learned  is  brought  forward  with  all  possible  despatch,  and 
at  which  the  parents  are  present,  that  they  may  convince  them- 
selves of  the  truth  of  the  matter.  These  public  examinations  at 
the  same  time  serve  to  excite  the  scholars  to  activity,  as  rewards 
for  diligence  and  good  conduct  are  distributed,  and  thus  a  moral 
value  is  added  to  the  political  one  of  these  institutions.  What- 
ever relates  to  the  arrangement  of  these  schools  in  their  out- 


GERMAN  EDUCATION.  263 

•ward  form,  in  their  connexions  and  relations  to  the  stale,  and 
the  like,  in  a  word,  whatever  belongs  to  the  administration  of 
the  whole,  may,  in  running  our  observations  through  them,  be 
pronounced  to  be  a  good. 

All  the  teachers  are  placed  under  the  control  of  an  upper 
teacher:  in  cities  where  there  are  at  the  same  time  gymnasia, 
commonly  under  the  director  or  rector  of  the  same;  or  they  are 
under  the  special  oversight  of  the  principal  clergymen  of  the 
respective  faiths.  These  are,  again,  dependent  on  the  school 
college,  or  Upper  Council  of  Studies,  which,  in  connexion  with 
the  Upper  Consistorium,  constitutes  the  highest  Board.  In  how 
far  this  whole  arrangement  constitutes  one  complete  and  homo- 
geneous scheme  of  education  institutions,  including  the  universi- 
ties themselves,  we  will  hereafter  take  an  opportunity  to  point  out; 
we  now  proceed  to  describe  the  higher  institutions  for  instruction 
which  tire  expressly  intended  for  the  people.  The  next  in  order  are 

THE  EEAL  SCHOOLS  ;* 
CALLED  ALSO  MIDDLE  SCHOOLS,  HIGHER  BURGER  SCHOOLS,  ETC. 

The  origin  of  these  schools  we  owe,  as  we  have  said,  to 
Bassedow,  who  transplanted  the  ideas  of  Rousseau  to  Germany, 
which  found,  by  degrees,  a  complete  introduction,  especially 
amongst  the  tradespeople;  yet  the  Real-schools  of  that  period — 
the  end  of  the  last  century,  are  by  no  means  to  be  considered  as 
synonymous  with  the  present  ones,  although  they  then  excited  a 
general  interest  and  acquired  for  themselves  a  tolerably  high 
position.  They  agree  entirely  in  this,  that  they  were  schools 
for  those  who  were  not  intended  to  go  forward  to  the  universi- 
ties, and  yet  whose  future  destinations  demanded,  in  some  mea- 
sure a  higher  education  than  ordinary.  The  subjects  of  instruc- 
tion in  them  were  particularly — geography,  history,  the  natural 
sciences,  calculation,  technology,  etc.  The  first,  however,  in  a 

*  Schools  in  which  all  the  real  and  practical  branches  of  education  necessary  or 
advantageous  to  the  business  of  life,  are  taught,  in  contradistinction  to  the  ideal 
and  more  ornamental  branches,  as  literature,  metaphysics,  the  more  critical  pro- 
secution of  the  classics,  etc. 


264  GENERAL  SYSTEM  OF 

more  extended  range  than  in  the  lower  class  of  Folk's-schools; 
these,  as  they  at  present  exist,  and  especially  such  as  are  organized 
on  the  most  recent  plans,  are  not  merely  higher  Burger-schools, 
but  indeed  such  as  might  qualify  for  an  academical  course. 
People  are,  however,  far  from  agreed  upon  the  rights  of  these 
schools;  upon  the  determination  of  their  relations  to  the  gym- 
nasia, the  universities,  etc.;  at  least,  in  many  German  states, 
great  debates  have  arisen  upon  this  debatable  point,  and  which 
are  yet  by  no  means  brought  to  a  conclusion. 

The  Real-schools  divide  themselves  into  Higher  Gewerb* — 
Polytechnical  Institutions — and  Provincial  Real-schools,  or 
Higher  Burger  Schools. 

Now  it  is  evident,  that  in  consequence  of  the  assumption  of 
the  higher  subjects  of  tuition,  as  foreign  languages,  the  higher 
mathematics,  physics,  etc.,  by  the  first  institutions,  a  disadvan- 
tage may  occur  to  the  Gymnasia,  insomuch  as  all  those  who  are 
expressly  educated  for  branches  of  state  official  service,  for 
offices  of  finance,  of  the  forests,  of  general  administration,  etc., 
are  educated  in  the  Gymnasia.  These,  and  other  reasons  which 
we  will  explain,  in  noticing  the  Gymnasia,  have  been,  and  pro- 
bably will  long  continue  to  be  the  causes,  that  no  result  suffi- 
ciently satisfactory  to  both  parties,  however  much  desired,  can 
be  arrived  at.  But  the  decidedly  advantageous  influence  which 
the  collective  body  of  Real-schools  exert,  and  which  it  will  more 
and  more  extend  by  still  continually  extending  its  sphere  of 
action,  is  not,  however,  to  be  mistaken ;  and  if  this  excites  a 
spirit  of  hostility,  there  cannot  be  a  more  palpable  reason 
assigned  for  it  than  that  which  is  drawn  from  a  rich  experience 
by  a  great  philologist,  and  thus  expressed: — "  What  is  new  is  not 
always  wholesome;  but  even  the  necessary  new,  and  which 
afterwards  proves  itself  to  be  an  actual  advance,  is  certain  in 
its  commencement  to  be  attacked." 

Let  us  now  glance  at  the  internal  arrangements  of  these 


*  These  are  not  to  be  confounded  with  common  Gewerb-schools,  which  are 
merely  for  mechanics :  by  keeping  in  mind  the  Higher  Gewerb-school,  the  distinc- 
tion is  clear. 


GERMAN  EDUCATION.  355 

schools ;  and  indeed  of  the  Higher  Gewerb-schools — literally 
Trade  schools — as  the  so-called  provincial  Real-schools  are 
neither  more  nor  less  than  better  elementary  schools,  or  rather 
schools  preparatory  to  the  Higher  Gewerb-schools ;  and  as  so 
many  of  the  real  branches  of  education  are  undertaken  in 
them.  To  these  provincial  or  preparatory  schools  belong  the 
teaching  of  physics,  natural  history,  the  elements  of  chemistry, 
modelling,  book-keeping,  etc. ;  instruction  in  the  French,  Eng- 
lish, and  Latin  languages ;  drawing  and  singing ;  the  former 
subjects,  however,  only  in  the  higher  classes.  The  subjects 
of  tuition  in  the  Higher  Gewerb,  or  technical  schools,  are,  on 
the  contrary,  mathematics,  algebra,  plane  trigonometry,  ana- 
lytical geometry  in  all  its  branches  and  modes  of  practical 
application ;  higher  algebra,  differential  and  integral  calcu- 
lus, plan-drawing  and  machine-drawing,  botany  and  zoology, 
and  physiology  of  plants,  geognosy,  geology ;  experimental 
chemistry,  technical  chemistry,  analytical  chemistry,  practical 
chemical  operations ;  mineralogy ;  mechanics,  statistic  and 
dynamic,  experimental  physics,  free  hand-drawing,  modelling 
in  wood  and  metal,  and  instruction  in  German,  French,  English 
and  Latin  languages,  and  history. 

It  may  easily  be  seen,  from  this  glance  at  the  subjects  of 
instruction,  how  comprehensive  these  educational  institutions 
are.  To  attempt  to  describe  the  advantages  that  they  afford 
would  lead  us  too  far,  and  lies  out  of  our  track ;  but  the  sub- 
ject deserves  the  attention  of  the  whole  civilized  world,  as  its 
consequences  must  become  continually  more  striking.  The 
circumstances  of  our  times  demand  a  real  education ;  that  is, 
in  the  practical  arts  and  sciences.  One  has  long  ceased  to 
desire  that  every  man  shall  be  every  thing ;  one  wishes  rather 
that  every  one  should  be  qualified  to  fill  with  ability  his  par- 
ticular post.  The  philosophical  school  compulsion  which  rules 
in  the  Gymnasia  is  here  entirely  nonexistent.  The  all-sided 
human  accomplishment  which  the  Gymnasia  aim  at,  and  ought 
to  aim  at  more  or  less,  is  not  arrived  at  in  these  schools, 
because  it  is  contrary  to  their  object  and  intention  ;  but  on  the 
other  hand,  they  afford  the  opportunity  more  thoroughly  to 

23 


266  GENERAL  SYSTEM  OF 

throw  the  minds  of  the  scholars  on  those  subjects  which  are 
the  most  congenial  to  them,  and  which  will  consequently  be 
most  serviceable  to  them  in  their  profession.  We  ourselves, 
far  from  being  admirers  of  a  too  strict,  and  therefore  forced 
and  one-sided  practical  education,  cannot  help  calling  to  mind 
the  splendid  proofs  of  the  advantageous  and  excellent  working 
of  these  praiseworthy  schools,  since  they  have  impressed  us 
with  the  conviction  that  in  this  manner  able  men  have  been 
educated  not  only  for  the  state,  but  for  science,  notwithstanding 
the  short  time  that  these  institutions  have  flourished. 


THE   GYMNASIA 

May  now  claim  our  attention,  which,  particularly  through  the 
conflict  which  has  arisen  between  them  and  the  Real-schools, 
must  possess  an  especial  interest. 

We  must,  in  the  first  place,  remark,  that  the  word  itself 
expresses  no  actual  conception  of  the  thing,  as  a  gymnasium 
properly  means  an  open  place,  where  the  youth  were  instructed 
in  philosophy, — in  fact,  an  associate-school.  In  Athens  there 
were  three  of  them :  the  Academia,  the  Lyceum,  and  Cyno- 
sarges.  The  origin  of  the  gymnasium  and  the  nature  of  its 
internal  business  as  a  higher  educational  institution,  are  simply 
indicated  by  the  term.  To  trace  what  modifications  these 
schools  have  undergone  from  that  period  to  the  present  would 
be  a  too  widely  excursive  notice  for  our  present  purpose.  We 
shall,  under  this  head,  understand  only  such  as  strongly  mark 
themselves  out  by  their  tendency  from  the  schools  already 
described,  and  which  properly  divide  themselves  into  the  Latin- 
school,  Progymnasium,  Gymnasium,  and  the  Lyceum. 

The  first  three  are  properly  schools  for  future  learned  men, 
artists,  &c ;  and  in  the  state  in  which  they  exist,  as  in  Bavaria, 
the  studies  are  commenced  in  the  Latin  school,  and  are  ended 
in  the  Gymnasium,  as  the  school  preparatory  for  the  university. 

By  the  Lyceum,  in  a  restricted  sense  of  the  word,  we  under- 
stand such  a  school  as  seems  to  conduct  to  a  certain  point,  the 


GERMAN  EDUCATION.  267 

education  of  the  students  of  the  scientific  faculty;  although  in 
the  first,  that  is,  in  the  Gymnasia,  etc.,  all  subjects  of  study  are 
facultative.  For  the  rest  it  is  very  difficult  to  give  a  descrip- 
tion of  these  schools  which  shall  express  their  real  character, 
since  in  every  one  of  the  German  states  they  have  different 
names  with  different  meanings,  and  in  many  places  bear  various 
appellations  where  they  possess  the  same  tendency.  The  Gym- 
nasium and  Lyceum  equally  signify  schools  which  give  a  course 
of  education  expressly  preparatory  to  an  academical  career, 
and  we  shall  therefore  include  both  under  the  general  name  of 
Gymnasium. 

The  elementary  instruction,  let  it  have  been  acquired  as  it 
will,  must  have  made  a  certain  advance  before  the  scholar  can 
enter  the  Gymnasium,  since  in  the  lowest  classes — the  Gymna- 
sium is  divided  into  classes  in  the  same  manner  as  the  Folk's- 
schoojs — are  taught  the  elements  of  the  Latin  tongue,  history, 
mathematics,  etc.  Here  are  especial  teachers  for  every  faculty 
of  science;  that  is,  one  teacher,  particularly  in  the  higher 
classes,  teaches  one  determinate  subject. 

The  study  of  the  ancient  classics  continues  still  the  chief 
business,  since  the  German  philologists  conceive  that  they  con- 
stitute the  only  and  indispensable  gymnastics  of  the  mind.  This 
is  another  ground  by  which  these  schools  have  come  into  open 
feud  with  the  Realist  tendency  of  the  age — why  the  Gymnasia 
have  dreaded  an  encroachment  on  their  rights  through  the 
rapid  growth  and  influence  of  Real-schools;  because  they  feared 
that  the  public  would  come  to  see  in  their  effects,  that  there 
was  another  mode  of  awaking  the  spirit  to  an  internal  activity 
than  by  the  study  of  the  dead  languages. 

It  is  not  to  be  denied  that  through  the  study  of  the  ancients 
the  spirit  is  awakened ;  the  sense  of  the  noble  and  the  great  is 
inspired ;  that  the  poetical  feeling  is  excited, — the  taste  purified, 
and  the  reason  strengthened ;  that  the  mind  is  accustomed  to  a 
logical  activity,  and  especially  to  self-reflection.  But  the  school- 
men go  too  far  with  this.  They  are  orthodox,  and  are  con- 
tented that  the  future  learned  should  here  find  their  necessary 
nourishment.  They  will,  in  general,  acknowledge  no  other 


268  GENERAL  SYSTEM  OF 

learning  or  education  than  that  of  the  Gymnasium,  and  torment 
every  one  with  it  who,  as  a  future  tradesman,  can  manage  his 
affairs  perfectly  without  this  knowledge,  and  can  bring  by  it 
little  or  nothing  out  of  the  school  into  his  own  trade.  Yet  at 
present  the  Gymnasia  strive  so  far  to  meet  the  acknowledged 
necessities  of  the  time,  that  they  have  adopted  some  of  the 
educational  subjects  of  the  Real-schools,  as  mathematics,  and 
the  natural  sciences  in  the  fullest  sense  of  the  word.  The 
subjects  of  tuition,  with  the  exception  of  the  predominant  teach- 
ing of  the  ancient  languages,  are  in  general  those  of  the  other 
schools ;  that  is,  of  the  Folk's-schools,  in  a  higher  degree.  The 
relation  to  the  state  is  the  same  as  that  which  we  have  already 
made  ourselves  acquainted  with  in  the  Folk's-schools;  and  we 
will  now  only  explain  a  few  more  of  the  peculiarities  of  the 
Gymnasia. 

A  totally  different  discipline  prevails  in  the  Gymnasia  to  that 
of  the  Folk's-schools.  Corporal  punishments  here,  for  the  most 
part,  cease  in  the  higher  classes  entirely.  Tasks,  shutting  up, 
open  reproof,  but  especially  moral  restraint,  are  the  means 
employed  for  correction.  The  teachers  also  stand  in  a  totally 
different  position  in  regard  to  their  scholars;  at  least  in  the 
higher  classes  there  is  less  school  compulsion,  though  probably 
on  that  account  not  the  less  pedantry  to  be  observed.  In 
general,  the  gymnasiast  is  already  more  free,  and  placed  in 
greater  external  advantage  than  the  scholars  of  the  other 
schools;  the  near  prospect  of  student  life  calls  forth,  not  seldom, 
extravagances,  which,  however,  are  contended  with  more  vigo- 
rously by  the  teachers,  but  through  the  advanced  age  of  the 
youths  are  not  readily  repressed.  Though  it  is  strictly  forbid- 
den, yet  the  gymnasiast  frequently  resorts  secretly  to  public 
places  of  diversion,  inns,  etc.;  he  also  begins  to  smoke,. and  to 
become  regardless  of  conventional  relations.  In  many  cities 
the  gymnasiasts  have  actually  endeavoured,  of  course  only  the 
older  ones,  to  form  corporations,  and  to  imitate  the  university 
Chores.  But  spite  of  all  this,  the  constant  and  great  diligence 
of  the  gymnasiasts  is  not  to  be  denied.  They  exert  themselves, 
because  they  know  that  it  is  only  by  that  means  that  they  can 


GERMAN  EDUCATION.  359 

arrive  at  promotion ;  that  is,  that  they  can  obtain  the  right  to 
enter  the  university.  We  must  here  break  off  a  moment  to 
notice  a  particular  which  is  of  essential  importance. 

The  Exemption-and-Maturity-Right*  belongs  exclusively  to 
the  Gymnasia — another  cause  which  has  called  forth  in  many 
German  states  contentions,  the  other  schools  already  making 
claims  on  this  privilege.  Nothing  can  indeed  be  more  vexa- 
tious, and  even  in  many  cases,  unsettling,  than  for  an  able 
scholar  of  the  Real-school,  after  he  has  passed  his  examination, 
and  has  given  ample  proof  that  he  is  quite  qualified  to  enter  the 
university,  to  have  again  to  make  the  course  of  the  Gymnasium, 
again  to  weary  himself  with  the  reading  and  study  of  the 
ancient  classics,  entirely  for  the  sake  of  the  formality  of  promo- 
tion, which  might  just  as  well  be  conferred  on  the  Real-schools, 
and  by  which  money  and  more  especially  time  might  be  spared. 
Frorrf  the  higher  position  which  these  schools  have  already 
assumed,  it  is,  however,  to  be  expected  that  this  injustice  will  be 
done  away  with,  at  least,  that  the  Exemption-and-Maturity- 
Right  will  be  extended  to  those  Real  scholars  who  devote  them- 
selves to  state  science,  and  to  those  professions  which  are 
included  in  it 

We  cannot  here  avoid  taking  the  opportunity  of  remarking 
that,  through  the  contention  of  these  two  institutions,  which  we 
have  thus  described  according  to  their  different  motives,  there 
stands  before  the  Gymnasium  a  reorganization,  unless  the  an- 
cienne  regime  maintains  the  upper  hand;  that  is,  if  the  one- 
sidedness  of  the  strong  philological  party,  which  aims  at  a  total 
isolation  of  the  two  institutions,  or  rather  at  a  complete  preven- 
tion of  their  co-operation,  shall  not  achieve  the  triumph  of  up- 
holding the  Gymnasia  in  the  most  unlimited  possession  of  their 
antiquated  privileges ;  are  not,  indeed,  prepared  to  resist  the 
stream  of  time  by  main  force,  and  to  deprive  the  Real-schools 
of  their  equally  high  importance.  The  conflict  is  severe,  be- 
cause prejudices  are  here  attacked ;  but  the  impetus  of  human 

*  Right  of  matriculation  in  the  universities  on  the  ground  of  the  applicant 
having  properly  matured  his  studies  in  the  Gymnasium. 

23* 


270  GENERAL  SYSTEM  OF 

advancement  surmounts  every  difficulty,  and  the  spirit  of  man 
knows  no  restraint  which  ultimately  may  not  be  broken 
through ; — but  we  must  return  to  our  subject. 

When  the  gymnasiast  has  passed  through  all  the  classes,  he 
then  undergoes  his  examination.  As  in  the  Folk's-schools,  so  in 
the  Gymnasia  also,  there  are  held  annual  public  examinations 
for  the  same  purpose ;  to  which,  however,  is  added  a  govern- 
ment commissioner,  for  the  examination  of  the  Abiturienten;  that 
is,  of  those  who  are  about  to  depart,  and  proceed  to  the  uni- 
versity. This  commissioner  has  to  pronounce  his  solemn  judg- 
ment upon  the  performances  of  the  Abiturient,  according  to 
which  his  promotion  is  allowed  or  not.  This  is  generally  ac- 
companied on  the  part  of  the  Abiturient  by  a  farewell,  or  other 
speech,  which  is  usually  composed  in  Latin  or  French,  and  on 
that  of  the  School  College  by  a  public  summons  to  the  university, 
to  which  is  added  the  necessary  school-certificates. 

It  is  now  curious  to  see  how  the  Abiturient  will  conduct 
himself  from  the  moment  that  he  turns  his  back  on  the  Gymna- 
sium. Not  a  book  will  be  looked  at ;  not  a  pen  will  be  touched ; 
he  recompenses  himself  immediately  for  the  school  torment  that 
he  has  passed  through,  by  a  delightful  do-nothing ;  and  gives 
himself  up  in  anticipation  to  the  blessed  consciousness  of  stu- 
dent life.  The  foretaste  of  awakening  liberty  leads  him  to 
commit  a  thousand  follies;  he- imagines  himself  lord  of  the 
world,  and  knows  no  conventional  restraints.  The  parents 
have  the  worst  of  it,  as  they  are  seldom  in  a  situation  to  put  a 
salutary  damper  upon  the  forth-bursting  storm  of  the  mind  of 
the  youth.  To  travel  is  rule  the  first  with  which  the  Abiturient 
busies  himself;  that  is,  in  which  he  seeks  to  sound  the  depths, 
and  explore  the  regions  of  the  desired  freedom.  His  great  en- 
deavour is  now  to  knit  up  acquaintances  with  students,  and  so 
comes  he  easily  into  student  life.  But  in  many  places  it  is  cus- 
tomary that  the  Abiturient  should  give  a  farewell  entertainment. 
Thither  are  invited  the  best  of  his  friends  from  the  abandoned 
school,  and  his  new  ones  amongst  the  students  ;  and  the  whole 
takes  much  the  character  of  a  Commers.  It  is,  moreover,  re- 
garded as  a  ceremonial  act,  and  is  introduced  by  the  singing  of 


GERMAN  EDUCATION.  271 

the  customary  song — The  Land's  Father.  From  this  period 
the  Abiturient  bears  the  name  of  Camel,  which  he  has  acquired 
in  exchange  for  the  abdicated  one  of  Frog. 

It  may  be  sufficient  to  remark,  that  the  educational  institutions 
of  every  kind  keep  tolerably  equal  step  with  the  universities. 
That  Germany  bears  away  the  crown  of  school  economy  from 
all  other  countries,  is  not  to  be  denied.  Or  where  is  the  country 
which  has  more  flourishing  schools  than  Prussia,  Wirtemberg, 
Baden,  etc. 

We  here  conclude  with  the  words  with  which  we  commenced 
— "  the  nineteenth  century  is  the  age  of  enlightenment ;"  and 
Germany  propels  at  the  highest  speed  its  spirit  towards  intel- 
lectual consciousness.  It  possesses  a  moral  vigour  which  no 
other  nation  of  the  earth  possesses,  and  the  giant  arms  of  Gor- 
man art  and  science  embrace  the  whole  wide  surface  of  the 
globe  "with  an  all-living  power. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


SONG  AN  INDISPENSABLE  REQUISITE  TO  THE  STUDENT,  AS  TO  ALL 
GERMANS. 


Where  man  sings,  lie  down — there  certain  peace  is ; 
Amongst  the  bad,  all  song  of  gladness  ceases. 


TRAVERSE  the  whole  territory  of  Germany,  every  where,  in 
the  north  and  in  the  south,  thou  wilt  hear  German  songs. 

What  is  the  German's  Fatherland  1 

So  name  me,  finally,  that  land ! 

"  Far  as  the  German's  free  tongue  springs, 

And  hymns  to  God  in  heaven  sings," 

That  shall  it  be,  while  sun  doth  shine ! 

That  land,  brave  German,  call  it  thine ! 

Serious  and  deep  feeling  are  characteristic  traits  of  the  Ger- 
man, and  may  indeed  distinguish  his  character,  so  variously 
modified  as  it  is,  amid  all  the  divisions  of  the  German  race,  and 
by  its  manifold  points  of  contact  with  its  foreign  boundary 
neighbours,  and  thus  becoming  tinged  with  so  many  colours. 
He  who  has  the  skill  to  clear  the  original  colour  from  its  foreign 
mixtures,  will  continually  find  it  lying  as  the  one  ground  colour, 
which  always  remains  the  same.  To  this  depth  and  sincerity 
of  feeling  the  songs  and  poetry  of  the  Germans  are  a  necessity 
As  to  the  man — when  all  the  chords  of  his  heart  are  shaken  by 


SONGS  OF  THE  STUDENTS.  273 

some  mighty  sorrow;  when  they  threaten  to  rend  asunder 
under  the  excess  of  agony — as  then  to  him  comes  a  flood  of 
tears  as  a  relief;  which,  as  it  were,  combines  the  contending 
feelings  of  his  internal  being,  and  amalgamates  them  with  the 
most  neutral  body — water  ;  so  song  presents  itself  as  a  medium 
to  prevent  us  from  succumbing  beneath  an  overwhelming  feel- 
ing, which  the  sufferer  would  fain  clothe  in  words,  but  finds  all 
words  too  poor  to  represent.  Let  a  language  be  as  rich  as  it 
will,  it  may  possibly  express  all  that  man  thinks,  but  not  all  that 
he  feels.  Nature  has  lent  the  eye  to  the  understanding  that  it 
may  serve  it,  and  in  which  it  may  wonderfully  mirror  itself. 
In  this  microcosm  of  the  eye,  her  creative  power  has  marvel- 
lously repeated,  in  little,  every  part  of  his  masterpiece — man ; 
and  has  so  completely  furnished  it,  that  it  can  answer  most 
admirably  to  its  destination — to  conduct  man  to  the  truth.  But 
nature,  has  bestowed  upon  her  favourite  yet  another  sense, 
through  which  the  fibres  of  his  brain  can  instantly  be  put  into 
vibration.  Through  this  she  has  rendered  his  position  in  society 
delightful,  and  endowed  him  with  sensibility  to  foreign  commu- 
nications. 

But  shall  these  be  the  only  advantages  which  this  sense  shall 
procure  him  ?  No ;  through  this  shall  external  impressions 
enter,  which,  corresponding  with  the  laws  of  beauty,  shall 
furnish  him  with  a  new  enjoyment  Through  this,  feeling  can 
be  constantly  and  directly  acted  upon — that  portion  of  the 
human  soul  where  the  animal  and  the  divine  nature  so  wonder- 
fully meet.  In  vain  would  he  attempt  to  escape  from  its  lord- 
ship ;  its  power  extends  farther  than  appears  at  the  first  sight ; 
and  when  sufficiently  observed,  is  found  to  be  the  ultimate 
spring  of  all  human  operations.  Other  nations  may,  if  they 
please,  believe  that  the  ear  was  given  them  in  order  to  listen  to 
strange  language, — the  German  is  not  so  cruel  as  to  rend 
Euterpe  and  Polyhymnia  out  of  the  band  of  the  Nine  Sisters. 
Every  where  in  Germany  are  altars  built  to  these  sisters,  and 
the  goddesses  smile  down  approval  on  the  people,  because  they 
deem  themselves  worthy  to  scatter  incense  before  them. 

The  faith  in  the  mysterious  might  of  music  and  of  song, 


274  SONGS  OF 

which  so  beautifully  expressed  itself  in  the  Mythology  of  the 
Greeks,  shone  forth  also  in  newer  Sagas;  and  even  refined 
Christendom  has  not  disdained  to  employ  music  to  work  upon 
the  hearts  of  its  votaries.  Goethe  has  done  homage  to  this 
beautiful  faith  when,  in  his  Prologue  to  Faust,  he  causes 
Raphael  to  speak. 

The  sun,  in  its  old  way,  goes  sounding, 

With  brother-spheres  in  rival  song, 
And  its  prescribed  course  thus  rounding, 

Careers  with  thunder-speed  along. 

Thus  the  Germans  rejoice  themselves  in  an  affluence  of 
popular  songs,  although  they  possess  but  few  national  poets. 
This  latter  fact  easily  explains  itself,  when  one  reflects  how  late 
the  German  speech  arrived  at  a  greater  perfection,  and  that, 
at  the  same  time  that  Germany  achieved  a  literary  indepen- 
dence and  literary  greatness,  it  lost  its  political  freedom,  and 
came  out  of  its  captivity  a  dismembered  whole. 

Take  from  Germany  its  wine,  its  songs,  and  we  might  name 
yet  a  third  particular  of  a  less  middle  character,*  and  it  will 
become  quite  another  country.  The  German  expresses  the  most 
varied  feelings  in  song,  though  he  does  not  go  quite  so  far  as 
the  opera,  in  which  you  cannot,  without  smiling,  hear  the  Czar 
of  Russia  conclude  a  contract  with  the  English  and  French 
ambassadors  singing,  and  ratify  the  Treaty  of  Peace  in  the 
most  exquisite  melodies.  But  the  Germans  acknowledge  the 
truth  of  what  Goethe  has  said : 

What  I  erred  in,  what  I  sought  for; 
What  I  lived  through,  what  I  fought  for ; 
Are  but  flowers  in  this  bouquet : 
And  the  young,  the  old  and  ailing, 
And  each  virtue  as  each  failing, 
Speak  their  language  in  some  lay. 


*  Here  the  learned  author  undoubtedly  alludes  to  the  universal  passion  for 
smoking.    Germany  is  truly,  in  every  sense  a  piping  nation. 


THE  STUDENTS.  275 

The  common  man  in  Germany  sings  as  he  goes  to  his 
labour ;  he  sings  while  he  works,  in  order  to  enliven  himself, 
and  when  he  has  concluded  he  naturally  sounds  forth  his  song 
of  satisfaction.  A  pleasure,  without  the  accompaniment  of 
singing,  he  does  not  understand.  Thus  the  foreigner,  who  has 
a  taste  for  singing,  hears,  with  surprise,  a  chorus-song  resound- 
ing from  a  public-house,  or  passing  along  the  streets,  which 
might  not  sustain  a  very  severe  criticism,  but  which  does  all 
honour  to  the  uneducated  singers.  So  they  establish  themselves 
in  the  smallest  villages  into  Gesang-vereine  (singing  companies), 
and  the  author  recollects  with  particular  pleasure.,  a  serenade, 
which  he  heard  in  returning  late  one  evening  from  Schriesheim, 
in  the  village  of  Handschuhsheim  ;  and  also  the  delightful  choral- 
song,  which  a  company  of  peasants  and  peasantesses,  frequently 
raised  in  the  summer  evenings  in  the  castle-gardens  at  Schwet- 
zingen^and  which  in  the  stillness  of  twilight,  when  the  splashing 
of  the  distant  fountains  were  only  heard  besides,  produced  an 
extraordinary  effect. 

Thus  it  happens  that  songs  of  simple  contents  and  of  simple 
airs,  spread  themselves  rapidly  amongst  the  people,  and  by  no 
other  means  in  Germany  can  you  so  speedily  operate  on  the 
popular  mind  as  through  the  medium  of  such  songs.  In  almost 
every  different  place  you  hear  different  songs.  As  an  example 
of  these  songs,  which  are  current  amongst  the  people,  we  may 
here  give  a  very  favourite  one,  which  is  sung  in  a  sort  of  half 
recitative. 

PRINCE  EUGENE.* 

Prince  Eugene,  that  noble  captain, 

For  the  Emp'ror  fain  would  back  win, 
Town  and  fortress  of  Belgrade, 

And  that  they  at  once  might  do  it, 

And  the  army  all  rush  to  it, 
Caused  he  that  a  bridge  be  made, 

*  This  is  translated  with  the  same  free  defiance  of  rhyme  and  metre  as  dis- 
tinguishes the  original,  and  which  may  find  plenty  of  parallels  in  our  own  old 
ballads  of  the  people. 


276  SONGS  OF 

When  this  work  so  far  had  ran  on, 
That  with  baggage  and  with  cannon 

They  could  pass  the  Danube  flood, 

By  Semlin  struck  they  their  tents  all, 
And  to  chase  the  Turks  they  went  all, 

To  chase  them  far  with  jibes  and  blood. 

It  fell  on  the  twenty-first  of  August, 

There  came  a  spy  through  rain  and  storm-gust, 

Swore  to  the  Prince,  and  showed  him  then, 
That  the  Turks  did  near  him  hover, 
As  far  as  man  could  them  discover, 

With  three  hundred  thousand  men. 

When  Prince  Eugene  thus  comprehended, 
He  bade  that  he  should  be  attended 

By  his  generals  and  field-marshals ; 
He  caused  them  to  be  instructed 
How  the  troops  should  be  conducted, 

And  upon  the  foe  should  fall. 

Through  the  parole  the  word  was  given, 
That  when  they  count  one  and  eleven 

At  the  midnight  by  the  clock, 

Every  man  to  horse  should  go  then, 
For  to  skirmish  with  the  foemen, 

All  who  strength  had  for  the  shock. 

All  to  horse  at  once  then  leaping, 
And  their  swords  before  them  keeping, 

Swift  and  silent  they  advance; 

The  troopers  and  hussars  also  then, 
Struck  right  stoutly,  blow  for  blow  then, 

'Twas,  in  truth,  a  lovely  dance. 

Gunners  to  the  walls  advancing, 

Play  ye  music  to  this  dancing, 
With  your  cannons  great  and  small ; 

With  the  great  ones,  with  the  lesser, 

On  the  Turks!  and  on  the  Heathens! 
Till  they  scamper  one  and  all ! 


THE  STUDENTS.  277 

Prince  Eugenius  on  the  right  wing, 

Like  a  lion  there  was  fighting, 
As  general  and  field-marshal. 

Prince  Ludwig  rode  to  and  fro  then, 

"  On,  be  brave,  ye  German  brethren, 
Strike  the  foe  with  dauntless  hands !" 

Prince  Ludwig  he  must  surrender 

His  spirit  and  his  life  so  tender, 
For  a  bullet  struck  him  down  ; 

Prince  Eugene  was  sorely  grieved 

Of  such  friend  to  be  bereaved, 
And  had  him  brought  to  Peterwardein. 

The  Bauer,  the  Handworker,  the  Sportsman,  in  short,  each 
and  all  have  their  peculiar  songs  in  abundance,  which  are  never 
out  of  their  mouths.  Do  all  Germans  then  sing,  and  sing  they 
everywhere?  some  one  may  ask.  No,  don't  fear  that  you 
would  actually  be  deafened  with  singing  in  Germany.  The 
Bundestag,*  when  it  holds  its  silting ;  the  Landtag,f  when  it  is 
in  debate ;  the  statesman  in  the  business  of  his  office ;  the  learned 
man  writing  his  dissertation,  and  many  other  people,  don't  sing ; 
in  short,  people  do  not  sing  in  their  solemn  affairs,  though  the 
opera  makes  them  do  so.  But  amongst  those  who  have  nothing 
better  to  do,  the  little  children  who  have  yet  no  proper  voices, 
or  initiated  ears  for  it,  and  the  very  old  people  who  have  partly 
sent  their  teeth  before  them  into  another  world,  are  the  only 
ones  that  don't  sing.  The  young  sing  much,  the  care-free  young 
still  more ;  and  the  students  perhaps  most  of  all. 

Singest  thou  not  through  all  thy  lifelong  hours] 

Yet  in  thy  youth  rejoice ; 
We  hear  alone  while  lasts  the  moon  of  flowers 

The  nightingale's  sweet  voice. 

Uhland. 

It  is  this  also  which  gives  heart  to  the  student ;  and  how  can 
he  who  is  called  the  son  of  the  Muses,  do  otherwise  than  be 

*  States  Confederation.  t  Parliament  of  a  State. 

24 


278  SONGS  OF 

obedient  to  his  divine  mother?  The  so-called  Commers-Books 
contain  a  rich  collection  of  songs,  so  that  the  student  can  be  in 
no  embarrassment  to  find  one  suitable  to  the  moment.  He  finds 
here  a  song  adapted  to  every  occasion,  and  to  every  mood  of 
mind.  Before  all,  social  songs  are  in  requisition  when  the 
students  are  assembled  at  their  Kneip  for  a  merry  meeting. 
As  the  larger  assemblies  of  this  kind  are  called  Commers,  so 
the  song-books  are  called  the  Commers-Books. 

When  a  song  is  sung  by  a  number  of  them  in  company,  it  is 
the  duty  of  the  Foxes  to  hand  round  these  books.  The  popular 
songs  live,  however,  without  the  books,  permanently  in  the 
minds  of  the  students.  An  individual  student  often  sings  a 
song  solo.  The  greater  portion  of  them  are  only  what  may  be 
called  natural  singers ;  but  in  a  large  Chore  this  is  not  of  much 
consequence.  In  most  of  the  German  schools  a  portion,  but  a 
very  scanty  portion  of  instruction  in  singing  is  given,  and  this 
mainly  with  the  object  of  preventing  the  people  from  too  much 
disturbing  the  devotions  of  the  congregations  in  the  churches 
by  their  dissonance.  By  this,  however,  so  much  is  gained,  that 
every  one  who  has  afterwards  neglected  singing,  yet  still  re- 
tains a  notion  of  it.  There  is  besides  sure  to  be  found  amongst 
such  a  throng  of  students,  no  inconsiderable  number,  who 
possess  a  really  fine  voice,  and  which  has,  therefore,  not  been 
neglected.  These  are  they  who  in  the  Kneips  often  execute  a 
solo,  or  in  the  choral-songs  undertake  the  solo  part,  and  others 
endeavour,  by  the  power  and  steadiness  of  their  voices,  to  con- 
ceal the  defects  of  those  who  sing  with  them.  When,  as  often 
happens  in  summer,  the  company  suffer  their  songs  to  float  in 
the  open  air,  and  when  the  cups  have  not  gone  too  diligently 
their  round,  it  is  then  a  genuine  pleasure  to  listen  to  them.  One 
of  the  most  beautiful  songs,  and  which  is  most  frequently  sung 
at  the  German  universities,  is  this,  in  which  the  effect  of  the 
chorus  is  often  strengthened  by  the  accompaniment  of  instru- 
mental music: — 


THE  STUDENTS.  279 

COMMERS  SONG. 

From  high  Olympus  comes  our  pleasures  crowning, 

From  thence  our  dream  of  youth  was  sent ; 
Therefore  trust  brothers,  spite  of  Envy's  frowning, 
Who  would  our  youthful  joys  prevent 
Solemnly  sound  ye  the  jubilant  song, 
Revelling  brothers  with  beaker  clang. 

Deep  in  the  sea  of  youthful  pleasure  drinking, 

Joy  smiles  and  beckons  from  the  shore ; 
Till  on  some  evening  late  the  bright  sun  sinking, 

Delights  us  with  its  beams  no  more  ! 

Solemnly,  etc. 

So  long  as  pleaseth  God,  thus  friends  beloved, 

In  gladness  shall  our  life  move  on  ; 
And  when,  some  day,  the  curtain  is  removed, 

We'll  join  our  worthy  fathers  gone. 

Solemnly,  etc. 

Drink,  brother,  drink  !  thy  loved  one, — think  upon  her, 

She  who  thy  youth's  dream  blesseth  still ; 
A  glorious  "  Ho !"  now  sound  we  to  her  honour, 

That  through  her  every  nerve  shall  thrill ! 
Solemnly,  etc. 

And  of  our  brethren  is  there  one  departed — 

By  pale  Death  summoned  in  his  bloom  1 
We  weep,  and  wish  him  peace,  all  saddest  hearted, 
Peace  to  our  brother's  silent  tomb. 

We  weep  and  wish  that  peace  may  dwell 
In  our  dear  brother's  silent  cell. 

Very  frequently  in  the  students'  drinking  companies  they 
sing  a  roundelay,  as  we  lately  saw  at  the  evening  peep  at  them 
at  Hoffmann's  rooms,  where  each  one  sings  in  turn  a  song,  or, 
at  least,  a  strophe.  This,  as  we  have  seen,  they  term  a  Sauf- 
Comment,  which  we  may  look  at  a  little  more  closely,  as  it  is 
sometimes  attended  with  variations.  The  president  of  the 
Sauf-Comment  sings, — 


280  SONGS  OF 

There  goes  a  drinking-law  our  table  all  around,  around, 
There  goes  a  drinking-law  our  table  all  around. 

Ten  quarts  and  yet  one-a 

Ye  knew  well  what  I  think  on-a. 
Ten  measures  and  ten  mo, 
Fidibum  !  let  one  now  go,  let  one  now  go,  let  one  now  go! 

Or, 

Three  time  three  are  nine-a, 

Ye  know  well  what  I  opine-a, 

There  goes  a  drinking-law  our  table  all  around ! 

When  all  have  sung  round  till  it  comes  to  one  who  can  find 
no  more  song  to  sing,  the  Chore  then  sings — 

Our  brother,  N.  N. 
To  pitch,  to  pitch,  is  turned  again. 
Draw  thou  white-horse  good, 
Up  to  the  knees  in  mud,  etc. 

The  student  has,  again,  other  songs  for  festive  celebrations 
and  for  fun,  as  for  the  initiation  of  the  Foxes,  by  the  Fox-ride ; 
for  the  Commers ;  for  the  departure  from  the  university ;  nor  is 
he  at  all  wanting  in  songs  proper  for  a  serenade  to  his  beloved. 
Love,  Wine,  Fatherland,  Friendship,  of  them  the  poets  of  a 
former  age  have  sung,  and  of  them  sing  the  poets  of  our  own. 
These  the  songs  of  the  student  celebrate,  and  the  son  of  the 
Muses  does  not  forget  to  enjoy  his  wine  while  he  sings  of  it, 
well  knowing  how  very  often  the  other  things  exist  rather  in 
idea  than  in  actuality. 

And  who  should  be  more  in  the  humour  to  sing  a  merry  song 
than  the  student,  who  revels  in  the  enjoyment  of  the  serene  pre- 
sent, perhaps  shutting  out  a  darker  future  from  his  eyes,  which 
is  yet  separated  from  him  by  his  examination.  This  happy 
time,  free  from  all  cares,  which  darken  the  later  life  of  him 
who  grasps  at  riches  or  at  the  phantom  of  renown ;  this  time,  he 
knows  well,  comprehends  but  a  few  years, — "  but  the  whole  of 
life,"  thinks  he  philosophically  enough,  "  is  but  a  span  of  time, 


THE  STUDENTS.  281 

therefore  let  us  the  more  enjoy  these  years,  and  celebrate  with 
song  the  felicity  of  youth."  In  this  spirit  they  often  sing  and 
act  with  great  glee  the  following  comic  piece : 

AN  UNBOUNDED  JOLLITY. 

• 

An  unbounded  jollity  is  of  my  life  the  rule,  Sir, 
Since  it  leads  me  gaily  through  youth's  rosy  paradise : 
Comes  a  Manichean  in,  an  old  dunning  fool,  sir, 
I'm  sure  to  give  him  much  good  advice. 

"'Slife!  hear  you  now,  sir,  I  want  my  gold." 

"  Cease  jaw,  Camel,  I've  none,  and  that's  soon  told." 

Spoken. — Make  thyself  scarce,  Old  Lamentable  !  Give  time  !  or  I'll  pay 
thy  long  bill  with  five  silver  groschen.  Agio. — We'll  knock  it  all  oS,  (point- 
ing to  his  stick,  and  showing  his  five  fingers.) 

Quickly  doth  the  old  fool  fly, 

And  I  laugh  till  fit  to  die. 

Pray  then  when  a-fresh  the  rhino  cometh  in,  sir. 

An  unbounded  jollity,  etc. 

Morning  to  the  lectures  go ;  nine-pins  in  the  evening ; 
Early,  in  old  house-coat ;  not  till  late  our  toilet  made. 
To  Commers  then  haste  away, 
For  there's  pawked  in  a  Fox  to-day. 

Spoken. — "  Silence,  Fox !  hold  your  tongue  when  Old  Mossy  Heads  are 
speaking." — "  Ah  !  Heavens  !  I  can  drink  no  more  of  these  healths.  It 
makes  me  so  ill." — "  Hold  thy  tongue,  Fox  !  Thou  hast  yet  only  emptied 
nineteen  choppins  of  most  excellent  beer.  It  is  not  worth  talking  of.  Study 
only  three  years,  and  thou'lt  bring  it  up  to  nine-and-twenty." 

So  we  hold  the  Commers  here, 

Jolly  still  with  wine  and  beer, 

For  we  are  but  young  once,  in  our  life  so  fleeting. 

An  unbounded  jollity,  etc. 

Meet  I  now  an  Exquisite,  who  comes  stately  sailing, 
Who  right  flat  and  swelling  large,  draws  near. 
Then  trample  I  on  his  toe — then  wondereth  he ; 
I  tread  it  again — then  waxeth  he  wroth. 
24* 


282  SONGS  OF 

Spoken. — "  Hear  you  there  !  Was  that  done  purposely  with  the  foot  1" 
— "No;  it  was  done  with  the  heel." — "  So!  but  that  appears  to  me  very 
strange  ?" — "  Do  me  then  the  only  pleasure ;  find  nothing  strange  here.  You 
are  a  Stupid  Youth  !" 

And  the  duel  then  is  seen, 

For  the  wit  is  mighty  keen  ; — 

Strike  him  a  thundering  Winkelquarte  !* 

An  unbounded  jollity,  etc. 
Find  I  then  a  sweet  maid  and  loving, 
Then  contains  Ovidii  Ars  Amandi,  good  advice. 
"  Ay,  but  wilt  thou  marry  me  T' — "  Don't  be  afraid  ; 
When  I've  once  my  office  got,  'twont  be  delayed." 

Spoken. — "  Aha  !  that's  just  as  it  happens  !  First  I  go  to  Jena,  there  to 
study  the  Nefas ;  then  go  I  to  Heidelberg,  study  there  the  great  JF«ss.f 
That's  the  way  of  it." 

And  then  comes  the  tug  of  strife, 

With  the  Pandects,  life  for  life. 

Then  after,  examen,  office  calls,  and  then  for  marriage. 

An  unbounded  jollity,  etc. 
I'm  a  great  philosopher,  of  the  school  of  Hegel, 
And  his  system  follow  I  to  the  life. 
The  Beadle  is  upset,  the  Philistine  is  teased  ; 
Goes  all  wrong — the  Prorector  is  appeased. 

Spoken. — "  Well,  Sir !  last  night  you  have  again  cudgelled  and  floored  five 
watchmen ;  and  for  this  you  must  spend  four  weeks  in  the  Career." — "  Your 
Magnificence,  I  think  nothing  of  that !" — "  You  will  go  on  cudgelling  watch- 
men till  you  get  the  Consilium  abeundi." — "  Youth  must  sow  its  wild  oats ; 
— that's  an  old  rule.  Your  Magnificence  was  young  once  :  certainly  it's  a 
good  while  ago ;  but  spite  of  this,  I  hope  one  of  these  days  to  become  an 
honest,  brave  fellow,  and  do  service  to  my  Fatherland,  and  become  a  special 
honour  to  your  Prorectorate." 

Thereupon  drops  he  a  tear ; 

Thinks  of  his  youth — "  Ah !  it  was  dear  !" 

Gives  me  an  examen  summa  cum  laude. 

An  unbounded  jollity,  etc. 
*  A  slanting  cut  in  the  left  cheek.  t  Great  tun. 


THE  STUDENTS.  393 

Happy  are  they  who  carry  on  with  them  this  free  and  cheer- 
ful disposition  into  after-life,  which  for  most  of  those  who  now 
live  so  gaily  and  happily  at  the  university,  brings  an  arduous  suc- 
cession of  labours  loaded  with  cares  and  fatigues,  which,  how- 
ever, sometimes  leave  as  their  reward  at  the  end  of  their  career 
of  life,  a  consciousness  of  having  discovered  a  certain  portion  of 
truth,  and  of  having  been  able  to  benefit  their  fellow-citizens. 
Student-life  thus  belongs  to  those  things  which  can  come  only 
once  in  our  existence,  but  which  are  on  that  very  account  the 
fullest  of  happiness,  and  must  often  extend  their  influence  so  far 
as  at  least  to  refresh  by  their  memory  a  later,  solemn,  and  joy- 
less life.  The  songs  of  a  happy  youth  accompany  him  who  has 
entered  on  the  more  serious  path  of  his  existence,  and  their 
melody  is  able  to  bring  him  back  for  a  moment  now  and  then 
into  the  dream  of  his  young  years.  With  a  song  of  sorrow  the 
student  too,  follows  to  the  grave  the  brother  who  departed  this 
life,  and  then  turns  from  the  image  of  death,  and  rejoices  that 
he  yet  longer  can  enjoy  the  happy  Burschen  period. 


GAUDEAMUS  IGITUR. 

Gaudeamus  igitur 
Juvenesdum  sumus; 
Poet  jucundam  juventutera, 
Post  molestam  eenectutem, 
Nos  habebit  humus. 

Ubi  sunt,  qui  ante  DOS 
In  mundo  fuere  1 
Vadite  ad  superos, 
Transite  ad  inferos, 
Ubi  jam  fuere. 

Vita  nostra  brevis  eat, 
Brevi  finietur; 
Venit  more  velociter ; 
Rapit  nos  atrociter ; 
Nemini  parcetur. 


284  SONGS  OF  THE  STUDENTS. 


Vivat  academia, 
Vivant  professores, 
Vivat  membrum  quodlibet, 
Vivant  membra  quselibet ; 
Semper  sint  in  flore. 

Vivant  omnes  virgines, 
Faciles,  Formosa?; 
Vivant  et  mulieres, 
Vivant  et  mulieres 
Bonse,  laboriosse. 

Vivat  et  respublica, 
Et  qui  illam  regit ; 
Vivat  nostra  civitas, 
Mecenatum  caritas, 
Quse  nos  hie  protegit. 

Pereat  tristitia, 
Pereant  osores ; 
Pereat  diabolus, 
Quivis  anti-burschius 
Atque  irrisores. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

DRINKING    CUSTOMS    OF   STUDENT   LITE,   ANCIENT   AND    MODERN. 


Seize  the  glittering  wine-cup  there ! 
See  ye  not,  so  purply  winking, 
Blood  of  nature,  rich  and  rare  ? 
Let  us  grasp  it,  boldly  drinking, 
That  a  fire-strength  may  glow 
Through  each  vein — a  new  creation ! 
Sacred  is  of  wine  the  flow — 
Is  of  youth  the  glad  elation ! 

Uhland. 


HAVE  the  gods  drunk  nectar ! — the  gods,  exempt  from  all  the 
cares  of  mortal  existence,  and  shall  then  poor  mankind  be  envied 
the  enjoyment  of  their  earthly  nectar?  No;  not  without  cause 
was  it  celebrated  by  all  the  ancient  poets.  Even  the  great  Re- 
former himself  joined  in  its  praise;  and  Horace  says — 

Narrator  et  prisci  Catonis, 
Ssspe  mero  caluisse  virtus. 

Then  come  the  moralists  truly  and  say,  "You  should  not 
purposely  throw  yourselves  into  an  artificial  gladness ;  the  true 
gladness  comes  from  within."  Very  true;  and  the  genuine 
healing  of  sickness  comes  from  within,  and  you  shall  and  can- 
not subdue  it  by  art?  It  is  therefore  that  the  Turks  believe  that 
you  ought  not  to  assist  nature  in  her  marvellous  operations  by  a 
healing  means.  If  that  be  your  faith,  do  as  the  Turks  do,  and 
drink  no  wine.  But  have  we  not  thus  a  thousand  things  which 


286  DRINKING  CUSTOMS 

are  to  a  certain  degree  necessary  to  our  well-being,  necessary 
to  preserve  the  proper  tone  of  mind  and  body  1  And  would  you 
blindly  condemn  all  these?  Wherefore  then  do  you  imagine 
that  wine  was  made  1  Would  you  banish  all  poetry  out  of  life, 
and  say 

Who  then  would  cheat  himself  with  phantom  shapes, 
That  with  a  borrowed  charm  do  clothe  existence, 
And  with  a  false  possession  follow  Hope  ] 

Schiller. 

Will  you  do  that?  Then,  indeed,  must  you  banish  wine ;  for 
it  is,  so  to  say,  an  incarnate  poetry.  For  if  it  were  not  that, 
it  were  nothing  to  us ;  and  to  whomsoever  it  is  not  that,  him 
counsel  we  to  refrain,  and  to  hand  it  over  to  other  and  happier 
mortals.  But  think  well  on  it  ere  you  banish  all  poetry  out  of 
the  world. 

The  roseate-tinted  veil  of  dreams 

Falls  from  Life's  countenance  of  pallid  gloom, 

And  the  world  showeth  as  it  is — a  tomb. 

Schiller. 

Who,  then,  would  wish  to  live  in  such  a  world  ?  No ;  we 
value  the  wine  which  calls  forth  the  poetry  of  the  inner  man  of 
him  who  is  not  totally  abandoned  of  the  Muses.  But  you, 
perhaps,  reprobate  the  enjoyment  of  wine  as  too  ignoble  and 
material.  But  is  it  then  the  material  portion  of  the  wine  which 
confers  on  us  its  witchcraft  ?  No  ;  it  is  the  fine  spirit,  and  that 
ethereal  life  which  the  German  calls  the  flower  of  the  wine. 
They  ascend  to  the  exhausted  brain,  and  brace  the  relaxed 
chords.  Know  you  then  whether  the  strength  which  gives  to 
life  poetry  and  fresh  grace,  may  not  be  one  and  the  same  ? 
Whether  the  strength  which  is  here  bound  to  the  material  sub- 
stratum, be  not  the  same  which  there  seizes  thee  mightily  in  the 
creations  of  Shakspeare?  whether  it  be  not  the  same  which 
lives  in  the  accord  of  the  violoncello;  whether  it  be  not  the  same 
which  dwells  so  entrancingly  in  the  voice  of  the  beloved  ?  Yes, 
the  spirits  of  the  wine  are  related  to  others ;  and  when  they 


OF  THE  STUDENTS.  287 

discover  their  brothers  in  the  breasts  of  men,  so  combine  they 
vigorously,  and  bursting  their  bonds,  rush  forth  into  active 
operation.  All  those  noble  feelings  which  had  long,  perhaps, 
by  their  possessor,  who  had  experienced  the  bitter  deceits  of 
life,  been  beaten  down  and  slept  in  obscurity — now,  touched  by 
the  magic  wand  of  wine,  start  again  from  their  tomb.  But 
when  the  spirits  of  the  wine  find  there  only  strange  and  ignoble 
associates,  then  raise  they  with  them  a  fierce  conflict,  in  order 
from  such  guests  of  hell  to  free  man ;  whose  difference  from 
all  other  beings,  says  Goethe,  consists  in  this — that  he  be 
noble,  helpful,  and  good !  Therefore  despise  not  wine,  which 
is  capable  of  accomplishing  such  rare  ends,  which  can  raise 
phantasies  such  as  were  dreamed  in  the  Rathskeller  at  Bremen.* 
No;  we  acknowledge  the  wisdom  of  him  who  gave  the  wine 
to  mankind,  and  of  the  good  old  patriarch  who  so  thankfully 
received  it. 


OLD  NOAH. 

Noah  from  the  ark  had  got, 
The  Lord  came  to  him  on  the  spot ; 
He  smelt  his  offring  in  the  wind, 
And  said  to  thee  I  will  be  kind. 
And  since  a  pious  house  thou  art, 
Thyself  shall  name  the  gracious  part. 

Then  Noah  answered,  as  he  stood, 

"  Dear  Lord,  this  water  smacks  not  good. 

Therefore  I,  poor  old  man,  would  fain 

Some  different  kind  of  drink  obtain, 

Since  that  there  hath  been  drowned  therein 

All  sinful  beasts,  and  men  of  sin." 

To  Paradise,  God  stretched  his  hand, 
And  gave  him  thence  a  vine-stock  grand ; 
He  gave  him  counsel  good  and  right, 
Said,  "  Tend  thou  this  with  all  thy  might" 

*  A  tale  of  HaufTs  under  that  name. 


288  DRINKING  CUSTOMS 

He  him  instructed, — so,  and  so, — 
Till  Noah's  joy  no  bounds  did  know. 

Both  wife  and  child  did  Noah  call, 
His  servants  and  his  house-folks  all. 
He  planted  vineyards  all  about — 
For,  trust  me,  Noah  was  no  lout ; 
Built  cellars  then,  and  pressed  the  wine, 
And  tunned  it  into  hogsheads  fine. 

Old  Noah  was  a  pious  man ; 

Soon  to  a  row  hia  barrels  ran. 

To  God's  high  praise  he  drained  each  cask, 

Nor  deemed  it,  faith,  a  heavy  task. 

He  drank,  thereafter,  as  appears, 

Three  hundred  yet  and  fifty  years. 

A  knowing  man  thence  see  it  will, 
That  wine  well  used,  can  do  no  ill. 
And  farther, — that  no  Christian  more 
Into  his  wine  will  water  pour, — 
Because  there  hath  been  drowned  therein, 
All  sinful  beasts,  and  men  of  sin. 


The  Germans  never  despised  their  cups.  Tacitus,  in  his  time, 
said  of  them — "  To  drink  day  and  night  brings  disgrace  to  no 
one."  Tacitus  might,  in  truth,  have  said  pretty  much  the  same 
of  his  own  people.  If  in  the  beginning  they  mixed  their  wine 
with  water,  this  is  not  to  be  taken  as  the  fact  in  an  after  period. 
Who  does  not  recollect  the  son  of  Cicero,  the  most  celebrated 
drinker  of  his  time,  with  whose  exploits  in  tippling  scarcely  the 
Germans  could  match  themselves,  stout  drinkers  as  they  were  ? 
It  is  well  known  that  the  ancient  Germans  transacted  their 
most  important  affairs  when  they  were  elate  with  Bacchus,  and 
reconsidered  them,  the  next  day,  with  a  sober  understanding. 
This  custom  they  retained,  in  many  places,  during  the  Middle 
Ages,  and  this  was  the  case  in  the  free  city  of  Bremen.  Wine 
and  song  have  maintained  their  standing  in  every  true  Brother- 
hood, and  this  still  continues  to  be  the  practice  in  Germany. 


OF  THE  STUDENTS.  289 

This  ancient  German  custom  then,  least  of  all  could  be  expected 
to  be  abandoned  in  Burschendom,  and  their  songs  are,  for  the 
most  part,  sung  over  the  cup. 

We  may  here  find  a  place  for  some  words  of  Schluck's  persi- 
flage on  the  Burschen-Comment. 

"  The  songs  which  are  sung  by  the  Commerses  are  called 
Burschen  songs,  and  besides  the  students,  nobody  may  sing 
them — since  they, 

1.  Are  only  composed  in  honour  of  the  studentship;  and, 

2.  Are  chiefly  composed  in  Latin,  as  the  language  belonging 
to  the  learned." 

(This  is  no  longer  the  case.     Latin  songs  become  daily  rarer 
yet  some  still  remain  in  use,  as — Miki  est  propositum.) 

"  Should  a  Knote  dare  to  sing  a  student  song,  he  is  to  be  well 
cudgelled;  not  so  much  on  account  of  the  excellence  of  the  song, 
as  on*  account  of  the  audacity  of  the  Philistine,  presuming  to 
desecrate  songs  sacred  to  the  students  especially  as  it  is  impos- 
sible that  he  can  have  so  much  feeling  as  to  appreciate  the 
elegance  and  beauty  of  such  songs." 

As  the  occasions  on  which  men  sing  are  very  different,  it  is 
natural  that  the  contents  of  the  songs  should  be  so  too.  Some 
contain — 

Firstly. — An  incitement  to  joy.  Amongst  these  I  reckon  "  Up 
Brothers,  let  us  joyful  be ;"  or,  an  Exhortation  to  Friendship,  as 
that  bonne  amitie  song,  with  which  a  Commers  is  always  opened, 
and  whose  object  is  solely  to  create  a  friendly  feeling  in  the  Old 
Burschen  towards  the  Foxes. 

Secondly. — Others  are  Freedom  and  Fatherland  songs; 
amongst  which,  high  above  all,  stands  "  The  Landsfather." 

Thirdly. — Songs  which  express  the  spirit  and  bravery  of  the 
students ;  as — "  The  Bursch  of  genuine  Shot  and  Corn ;"  or 
"  The  Sword  on  my  left  side :"  "  Know  ye  the  happy  way  to 
conquer ;"  "  Brave  'tis  'neath  the  free  blue  Heaven,"  etc.  One 
of  these  we  may  here  give  at  length,  as  a 

35 


290  DRINKING  CUSTOMS 


PICTURE  OF  THE  OLD-FASHIONED  BURSCH. 

The  Bursch  of  real  shot  and  corn, 

His  courage  still  doth  bloom ; 
On  heavy  boot  the  spur  is  worn, 

From  hat  doth  sway  the  plume. 

The  huge  hat  makes  a  gallant  show, 
With  the  sword  cut  through  ;* 

It  guards  him  more  from  thrust  and  blow, 
Than  were  it  sound  and  new. 

The  Bursch  his  ornament  doth  bear, 
Which  him  such  pleasure  brings, 

The  sword  which  with  a  fearful  air 
Upon  his  left  side  swings. 

As  Bursch,  when  through  the  town  he  stirs, 

Majestic  in  all  eyes, 
The  sparks  they  lighten  round  his  spurs, 

And  fire  crossways  flies. 

What  careth  he,  though  hole  there  be, 

Upon  his  elbow  now  ; 
The  jolly  Bursch  remaineth  he, 

Before  whom  all  must  bow. 

But  wo  to  thee !  if  on  his  course 

In  perfumed  garb  thou  rub ; 
He'll  curse  thee  for  Pomatum-horse, 

And  threaten  with  his  club. 

For  friends  still  beats  his  heart  so  warm, 

He  feels  their  grief  and  care ; 
For  them  he  wields  his  mighty  arm, 

Nor  would  his  own  life  spare. 

*  See  the  Special  Commcrs. 


OF  THE  STUDENTS.  291 

Whoever  saw  him  shrink  a-back, 

Or  do  a  coward  deed  1 
Shame  on  him  he  would  never  take, 

Though  kingdoms  were  the  meed. 

They  saw  how  in  the  battle-shock 

His  flashing  sword  he  drew ; 
They  saw  how  from  its  sweep,  like  smoke, 

The  slaves  before  him  flew. 

Courage  in  danger  and  distress 

Is  aye  the  conquering  plan : 
Aye  though  all  hell  upon  him  press, 

He'll  show  himself  a  man ! 

Hears  he  of  Hermann's  spirit  proud, 

Of  his  high  deeds  the  fame, 
His  German  blood  warns  him  aloud — 

"  Be  worthy  of  the  name !" 

He  drinks  the  German  vine-juice  bright, 

And  German  feels  and  great; 
In  his  right  arm  dwells  giant  might, 

And  freedom's  his  estate. 

Then  live  hoch !  every  German  man 

Who  thinks  and  speaks  as  he ; 
But  they  who  falsehood  basely  plan, 

Extinguished  may  they  be ! 

Weighs  care  upon  his  heart's  repose, 

He  takes  his  pipe  so  dear, 
And  as  the  Knaster  fumes  and  glows, 

All  troubles  disappear. 

He  is  a  Bursch, — lives  sansfacon 

Him  all  their  friend  may  deem ; 
His  heart  is  good,  although  we  own 

At  times  it  different  seem. 

Fair  maids  he  wishes  free  from  wrongs, 

With  joy  to  their  life's  goal ; 
And  lauds  them  still  in  all  his  songs, 
•  With  all  his  heart  and  soul. 


292  DRINKING  CUSTOMS 

See !  though  all  glasses  empty  stand, 

Full  jugs  to  us  appeal ; 
So  send  the  wine  from  hand  to  hand, 

And  drink  the  Bursch's  weal. 

Already  from  the  jug's  full  flood 

To  glass  the  wine  doth  flow, 
And  to  our  worthy  Brotherhood, 

We'll  sound  this  hearty  hoch ! 

Baden  I  call  my  Fatherland, 

As  life  I  prize  its  weal ; 
Therefore  I  wear  the  Baden  Band, 

And  guard  with  hand  and  steel. 

Fourthly. — Others  are  drinking  songs :  as  "  Crambambuli, 
that  is  the  title ;"  or  "  When  carousing  I  shall  die ;"  "  The  year 
is  good,  the  brown  beer  thrives ;"  "  Bring  me  blood  of  noble 
vines ;"  "  The  dearest  sweetheart  that  I  have ;"  "  I  have  through- 
out the  forenoon  long ;"  "  I  and  my  dear  bottle ;"  "  Now  sing  in 
dulci  jubilo ;"  or  that  maiden  song,  in  which  the  maiden  is  drunk 
for,  while  he  who  empties  most  measures  is  declared  the  con- 
queror, and  entitled  to  marry  the  maiden;  while  the  rest  cry 
and  chorus, 

He's  done  it  stout,  he's  done  it  stout, 
So  will  he  not  be  laughed  right  out. 

And  the  maiden,  who  all  the  while  is  perfectly  unconscious  of 
these  proceedings,  and  has  given  no  consent  to  them,  is  de- 
clared to  be  won,  and  is  pronounced  to  be  the  beloved  of  the 
victor.  Ah,  poor  maiden !  so  wouldst  thou,  not  out  of  love, 
but  truly  contrary  to  thy  will,  be  thrown  into  the  arms  of  a 
drunkard ! 

This  maiden  song  is  now,  to  the  honour  of  the  studentship, 
quite  out  of  use ;  yet  Zackaria  describes  such  a  scene  as  com- 
mon in  the  days  of  his  Renommist. 

And  therefore  filled  he  with  beer  that  mighty  glass, 
And  drank  it  off"  the  first  unto  that  fair  endearing — 


OF  THE  STUDENTS.  293 

A  maiden  yet  whose  name  had  scarcely  met  his  hearing 
He  held  in  hand,  as  sceptre,  the  solid  room-door  key, 
Thus  acted  he  as  chief,  and  to  his  realm  gave  he 
A  sacred  law,  unpausing  the  measured  draught  to  end  ; 
And  oft  his  judge's  arm  let  the  heavy  key  descend. 
Wo  unto  him  who  then  this  law  as  rebel  brake, 
When  he  that  thunder- word  pro  pana,  to  him  spake. 
Then  must  another  measure  his  luckless  throat  o'erflow, 

Or  stood  he  in  great  danger  the  damsel  to  forego. 
*  *  *  *  * 

"  But  now,  ye  Brothers — hoch !  and  let  Belinda  live. 
Vivat  Selinda,  hoch  !  with  roughest  throats  now  roar, 
Vivat  Selinda,  hoch !  cry  mightily  once  more  ! 
Shout  for  the  third  time — hoch !" — the  very  room  did  quiver, 
And  on  the  long  wet  table  the  glasses  ring  and  shiver. 
As  in  old  Homer's  story,  upon  the  Trojan  plain, 
Mars,  like  ten  thousand  men,  sent  forth  a  cry  of  pain, 
Till  the  whole  army  trembled,  with  rock,  and  hill,  and  valley, 
Scy  trembled  now  this  chamber  with  this  Studenten  sally. 
Then  Torf  her  lovely  countenance  with  such  a  beauty  draws, 
That  each  one  swearing  gave  a  thundering  applause. 
The  Renommist  then  cried — who  inly  now  grew  warmer — 
Here  I  myself  do  choose  her — I  choose  her  for  my  Charmer. 
"  The  fiend  thou  dost  1"  said  Torf,  right  loath  to  give  her  o'er, 
But  Raufbold  straight  defied  him  to  twenty  choppins  more. 
Torf  yielded  up  the  contest — strength  did  his  hope  betray, 
And  Leipsic's  crown  was  thus  far  from  the  faint-heart  drunk  away. 

The  Renommitt. 

Certain  songs  belong  to  the  conclusion  of  a  Commers,  or 
drinking  meeting.  With  the  last  song,  the  glasses  are  turned 
upside  down  according  to  the  old  song,  and  the  brother  revellers 
wish  each  other  a  good  night. 

• 

I  take  my  dear  glass  in  my  hand 
And  bear  it  to  the  Underland. 

I  fetch  again  my  glass  so  dear, 

And  hold  to  th'  right  and  to  th'  left  ear. 

My  glass  unto  my  mouth  set  I, 
And  drain  it  to  the  bottom  dry. 
25* 


294  DRINKING  CUSTOMS 

The  right  thing  to  the  glass  do  we, 
What  was  above  must  under  be. 

The  glass  must  walk  the  land  O  ! 
From  one  to  th'  other  hand  O  ! 

He  who  in  drinking  or  singing  shoots  a  buck — that  is,  has 
broken  the  rule — must  pro  pcena,  or  in  other  words  as  a  penalty, 
empty  an  extra  choppin  or  two.  He  who  often  associates  him- 
self with  a  Commers,  is  called  a  Commers-brother. 


Give  us  a  prime  good  glass,  so  will  our  praise  be  ample, 
Only  be  't  not  too  scant  a  sample  ; 
For  when  on  wine  I  must  decide 
With  mouth  right  full  I'd  have  it  tried. 

Goethe's  Faust. 

So  thought  the  German  students  in  earlier  times,  and  so 
think  they  still.  Drinking  had  reached  a  dreadful  height  in  the 
Middle  Ages,  and  many  laws  were  passed,  but  in  vain,  to  put  a 
check  on  the  madness.  It  was  the  same  amongst  the  Burschen, 
who  carried  it  to  a  most  incredible  extent.  At  the  time  that 
those  students  who  were  the  best  drinkers,  were  most  regarded 
amongst  their  fellows  in  the  universities,  a  Westphalian  studying 
in  Halle,  made  a  visit  to  a  countryman  who  was  studying  at 
Jena.  The  Jena  student,  to  show  his  friend  that  he  understood 
life,  immediately  on  the  first  evening,  called  all  his  companions 
together,  and  they  all  drank  to  the  welcome  visiter  so  strongly 
in  beer  and  wine,  that  on  the  following  morning  he  had  hardly 
slept  off  the  effects  of  it  before  twelve  o'clock.  Scarcely  had 
he  dressed  and  despatched  his  dinner,  when  he  was  anew  con- 
ducted to  the  drink  ing-place.  Thus  the  revel  continued  for 
eight  days  in  succession,  when  he  travelled  back  to  Halle. 
After  his  return  he  related  many  strange  things  of  the  mode  of 
life  of  his  countrymen  in  Jena,  and  always  added — "Children, 
— it  is  very  curious  in  Jena, — there  is  no  forenoon  there." 

Such  madness  is  now  gone  by ;  yet,  ever  and  anon,  there  are 
students  who  might  boldly  challenge  the  gentlemen  of  the  old 
school  to  a  trial  at  toping,  if  they  would  rise  out  of  their  graves 


OF  THE  STUDENTS.  295 

to  it  Beer  is  the  general  beverage  of  the  students,  and  as  the 
best  sorts  of  the  same,  as  the  Bavarian,  and  the  formerly  cele- 
brated Heidelberg  beer,  are  not  strong,  the  health  of  the  con- 
sumer, even  in  a  long-continued  course,  is  not  injured  by  it,  as 
it  is  in  other  universities,  where,  through  the  want  of  beer,  wine 
and  spirits  are  drunk.  Beer,  at  the  same  time,  is  the  cheapest 
liquor,  and  on  that  account  is  liked  by  the  student  not  less  than 
by  the  common  man,  amongst  whom  it  is  equally  the  custom 
to  drink  much.  In  one  year,  when  the  choppin  (pint)  of  beer 
cost  one-third  of  a  penny,  or,  about  half  the  usual  price,  a  coach- 
man achieved  a  most  extraordinary  feat  in  drinking.  Some 
students  promised  to  pay  for  a  hundred  choppins  if  he  would 
drink  it  with  only  short  intervals.  He  accepted  the  offer,  and 
had  all  the  hundred  measures  set  in  a  row  on  a  bench.  He 
drank  the  first,  walked  slowly  to  the  end  of  the  hall  and  back, 
drank*off  the  second,  and  so  on  till  finding  not  another  drop,  he 
said  quietly  to  the  landlord — "  So,  now  let  me  have  just  another 
choppin  for  my  money." 

The  students  drink  generally  beer  at  their  Kneips,  and  if  this 
is  done  in  the  open  air,  a  large  company  is  accustomed  to 
pile  up  the  emptied  jugs  into  a  pyramid. 

Not  by  trophies,  marbled  over, 
Will  posterity  discover 

What  we  brothers  here  have  done ; 
But  of  triumph  our  memorial, 
These  drained  pitchers  in  their  glory  all, 

Pile,  a  pyramid  of  fun  ! 

Hauff. 

At  Commers,  and  on  other  festive  occasions,  are  also  fre- 
quently drunk  wine,  or  ardent  glee-wine  and  punch.  It  is  a 
very  ancient  custom,  amongst  drinkers,  that  the  glasses  must 
be  emptied  after  certain  and  manifold  practices  and  prescrip- 
tions. Horace  describes  a  similar  wont  in  his  time,  where  the 
drinkers  are  accustomed  to  elect  a  king,  who  presided  on  the 
occasion.  Such  rules  are  now  become  quite  voluminous  amongst 
the  students,  and  are  collected  into  their  so-called  Beer-Corn- 


296 


DRINKING  CUSTOMS 


ment.  This,  therefore,  contains  the  guiding  laws  of  the  Beer- 
Court.  We  will  give  this  Beer-Comment  at  the  end  of  the 
volume,  as  an  example  of  the  elaborate  style  into  which  this 
old  and  deep-rooted  custom  of  German  student-life  has  come  to 
be  carried  out.  Strange  as  it  may  appear  to  other  nations,  it 
is  a  custom  in  Germany,  old  as  the  universities  themselves ;  and 
as  our  object  is  to  probe  to  the  very  bottom  of  student-life,  and 
give  a  full  and  faithful  portraiture  of  it,  those  of  our  sober 
readers  who  may  not  think  these  very  wise  or  commendable 
laws,  may,  having  read  the  rest  of  the  book,  there  close  it, 
without  perusing  this  Beer-Code.  We  also  precede  the  account 
of  the  Commerses  with  a  collection  of  all  the  phrases  which  the 
Germans  employ  to  clothe  in  a  tolerable  garb  of  decorum  that 
dreamy  condition  into  which  Bacchus  frequently  throws  his 
votaries.  These  modes  of  expression  wer  ecollected  by  Licht- 
enberg,  and  a  few  only  have  been  added  to  them. 


He  scents  wine 

He  has  got  a  shot 

He  is  shot  through 

He  has  got  a  blow 

He  has  got  a  touch 

He  has  got  a  Jesuit 

He  has  got  too  much 

He  is  tipsy 

He  is  foggy 

He  has  got  a  saintish  look 

He  has  a  dizziness 

He  is  inspired 

He  is  full 

He  takes  a  Bauer  for  an 

earth-bear 
His  head  is  heavy 
He  has  dim  eyes 
He  is  not  right  in  the 

upper  story 
He  has  glass  eyes 
He  rocks 


HIGH  GERMAN. 

He  has  something  in  the 

roof 

He  is  full  and  furious 
He  has  his  load 
He  has  been  in  a  good 

spot 
He  has  something  in  his 

head 

He  has  enough 
He  has  got  a  bag-wig 
He  has  drunk  a  glass  too 

much 
He  has  pept  into  the  glass 

too  deep 

He  is  illuminated 
He  staggers 
His  tongue  is  too  heavy 
He  can't  lift  his  tongue 

any  more 
He  floats 
He  makes  crosses 


He  is  sated 

He  saw  wooden  cans  in 

heaven 
He   is  up  to  his  throat 

full 
He  has  made  himself  a 

beard 

He  goes  in  a  flourish 
He  is  well  blessed 
He  is  loaded  awry 
He  has    made    himself 

black 

His  house  is  haunted 
He  tacks  about 
He  can't  keep  his  legs 
He  is  funny 
He  is- well  drunk 
He  has  been  present 
He  is  ready 
He  is  off 
He  is  away 


OF  THE  STUDENTS. 


297 


He  is  happy 

He  takes  the  sky  for  a 
bass  viol 

He  sees  the  letters  dou- 
ble 

He  is  as  sick  as  heaven- 
hail 

He  is  dull  and  full 

He  has  followed  his  own 
fancy 

He  is  d  tout 

He  has  daubed  himself 

He  has  a  rattle 

He  has  a  ditto 

He  has  round  feet 

He  has  leaned  too  far 
over 

He  is  star-blind  thick 

He  yearns  after  the 
brandy  bottle 

He  has  lamed  his  tongue 

He  is  as  full  as  a  bag- 
pipe 

He  is  lost 

He  is  covered 

He  sees  two  suns 

He  is  thick  as  poodle- 
hail 


He  goes  as  if  all  the 
houses  were  his 

He  is  totally  away 

He  sails  with  full  sails 

He    leans    against   the 
shutter 

He  is  poodle  thick 

He  has  his  tally 

He  has  his  part 

He  can't  spit  over  his 
beard 

He  makes  a  pasfrise 

He  is  thick 

He  has  had  too  much  of 
a  good  thing 

He  has  been  in  his  cups 

He  has  something  in  the 
top 

He  is  cat  thick 

He  has  washed  himself 

He  has  drammed  himself 

He  has  done   it  pretty 
well 

He  has  taken  good  care 
of  himself 

He  has  a  giddiness 

He  can  scarcely  stam- 
mer 


He  has  Moses'  tongue 
He  is  led  about 
He  is  under  the  table 
He  takes  a  church-spire 

for  a  toothpick 
He  has  armed  himself 

with  a  sword 
He  has  sprinkled  his  nose 
He  has  endowed  himself 
They  have  buried  him 
He  is  hail-blind  full 
He  stares  like  a  stuck  calf 
He  looks  like  a  duck  in 

thunder 
He  is  be-kneipt 
He  is  split 
He  doesn't  come  home 

alone 
He  brings  Geiselbrecht 

with  him 

He  is  a  drunken  swine 
He  falls  off 
He  is  in  dulci  jubilo 
He  has  chopped  beyond 

the  line 
He  is  tufted 
He  cannot  walk  in  the 

line 


In  the  Low  German  are  some  fifty  other  phrases  on  the 
same  subject. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


THE    COMMERS. 


And  there  is  grandfather,  who,  letters  still  extant, 
Though  now  somewhat  ancient,  give  sure  text  on't. 
In  many  a  Commers  and  Burschen-feast, 
As  sword-bearing  Praeses  his  fame  increased. 

Preface  to  the  Rcnommist. 


OUR  discourse  shall  now  be  of  a  beautiful  feast  of  the  Students 
— the  Commers.  We  describe  the  Commers  of  the  present  day ; 
since  in  earlier  times  this  festival  bore  another  shape,  and  was 
disfigured  by  rude  customs,  so  that  we  may  justly  say  of  the 
Commers,  that  it  has  not,  like  most  other  feasts,  degenerated  in 
the  course  of  years,  but  has  already  improved  itself.  We  will 
hereafter  speak  of  these  customs  of  an  earlier  time,  and  of  some 
which  in  many  places  still  remain,  but  which  do  not  necessarily 
belong  to  the  Commers.  We  understand  by  a  Commers,  as  it 
now  exists,  a  festive  assembly,  which  consecrates  itself  by  a 
higher  tone  and  signification  by  the  singing  of  "  The  Lands- 
father." 

The  Commers  is  divided  into  the  general  and  the  special.  In 
the  former,  the  assembled  Chores,  and  all  other  students  who 
wish  it,  take  part.  In  describing  the  constitution  of  a  Chore, 
we  have  already  spoken  of  these.  In  the  special  Commers, 
only  a  particular  Chore,  with  all  those  that  are  attached  to  it, 
and  such  other  members  of  other  friendly  Chores  as  are  invited, 
take  part  The  Commerses  are  distinguished  into  Entrance  and 


THE  COMMERS.  299 

Farewell  Commerses,  with  which  the  Semesters  open  and  close. 
The  Fox-ride  generally  takes  place  at  the  Entrance-Commers. 
Each  particular  Chore,  moreover,  has  its  Foundation-Commers, 
on  which  it  celebrates  the  anniversary  of  its  establishment. 
Many  Chores  also  are  accustomed  to  hold  a  Commers  in  honour 
of  the  birthday  of  their  Land  Prince. 

First,  of  the  General  Commers.  To  this,  assemble  themselves 
all  who  take  part  in  it,  in  a  spacious  room,  either  in  the  city  or 
in  its  immediate  neighbourhood. 

Those  students  who  are  not  themselves  in  any  Chore,  attach 
themselves  to  one  or  other  of  them,  and  each  Chore  has  its 
particular  table;  and  two  presidents  sit  at  the  head  of  each 
table.  The  chief  president  is  the  Senior  of  that  Chore  which 
has  the  secretaryship. 

When  the  Commers  shall  begin,  the  presidents  cry  "  ad 
loca !"  which  command  every  one  must  be  careful  to  obey,  if 
he  would  avoid  the  consequence  of  a  beer  penalty.  In  these 
Commerses,  the  rule  is  to  drink  beer,  and  this  is  called  a  Com- 
mers in  beer.  The  chief  president  has  now  to  give  out  the 
songs  which  shall  be  sung,  and  he  also  dictates  the  particular 
verses.  Certain  songs  are  on  these  occasions  brought  forward 
from  time  immemorial,  as  "  Heidelberg,  live  thou !  hurrah 
hoch !"  or  the  following,  at  a  Farewell  Commers. 


THE  TRAVEL  SONG. 

Away !  we  have  drunk  it,  the  sparkling  wine, 
Adieu,  now,  ye  loved  ones,  to  wander  is  mine. 
Adieu,  now  ye  mountains,  thou  fatherly  home, 
For  mightily  drives  me  the  passion  to  roam. 
For  mightily  drives  me  the  passion  to  roam. 

The  sun  in  the  heaven  won't  pause  without  change, 
But  speeds  on  through  lands  and  o'er  oceans  to  range ; 
The  wave  will  not  cling  to  the  same  lonesome  strand ; 
The  storms,  they  go  roaring  with  might  through  the  land. 
—(The  land). 


300  THE  COMMERS. 

With  clouds,  fast  careering,  the  bird  floats  along, 
And  sings  in  the  far-land  its  home-loving  song ; 
Through  forest  and  field  so  the  Bursche  is  hurl'd, 
To  be,  like  his  mother,  the  wandering  world. 
—(The  world). 

There  greet  him  the  birds  which  beyond  seas  he  knew  ; 
From  fields  of  his  home-scenes  'tis  here  that  they  flew. 
The  sweet  flowers  around  him  familiarly  grow, 
In  airs  from  his  country,  far  wafted,  they  blow. 
—(They  blow). 

The  birds  !  O  well  know  they  his  father's  own  towers ; 
For  garlands  of  love  once  he  planted  those  flowers. 
And  love,  it  still  follows,  still  gives  him  the  hand, 
And  makes  him  a  home  in  that  furthermost  land. 
—(That  land). 


Before  each  president  lies  a  drawn  sword,  with  which,  as 
signal  of  command,  he  strikes  upon  the  table.  It  is  forbidden 
to  every  one,  on  pain  of  a  beer-penalty,  to  interrupt  the  song  in 
any  manner  whatever.  So  now  the  singing  and  drinking  go 
forward  in  regular  course.  At  a  later  hour  a  supper  is  eaten, 
and  the  Commers  is  closed  by  the  singing  of  "  The  Lands- 
father,"  after  which  there  is  no  more  singing,  but  it  imme- 
diately becomes  free  to  every  one  to  stay  and  kneip  on  as  long 
as  he  likes. 

When  "  The  Landsfather"  is  to  begin,  the  presidents  com- 
mand "  ad  loca !"  Every  one  must  quietly  take  his  seat,  and 
it  is  allowed  to  no  one,  as  otherwise  commonly  happens  at 
kneipings,  to  take  off  his  coat,  and  sit  in  his  shirt-sleeves.  All 
must  be  conducted  solemnly  and  seriously.  All  voices  join  in — 


THE  COMMERS. 


THE  CONSECRATION  SONG,  OR  LANDSFATHER. 


Silence  all  ye,  each  one  call  ye 

Unto  solemn  tones  his  ear ! 

Hark,  the  song  of  songs  I  raise  now, 
German  brothers,  join  in  praise  now, 

Sound  it,  sound  it  back  a  chorus  clear ! 

Of  your  Fatherland  the  song ; 
Fatherland !  thou  land  so  famous, 
Sacred  to  thy  glory  claim  us ; — 
Germans  proudly,  swell  ye  loudly, 

We,  our  swords,  to  thee  belong ! 

Life  and  living  to  thee  giving, 

We  are  all  prepared  to  bleed  : 
Ready  at  each  hour  for  dying, 
Death,  witk  all  his  wounds  defying, 
If  our  Fatherland  it  need. 

He  who  feels  not ;  he  who  zeals  not, 
In  true  worth  to  be  arrayed, — 

He  shall  not  our  bond  dishonour ; 

This  our  Bride,*  swear  not  upon  her; 
Nor  the  German  sword  degrade. 

Song  the  proudest,  swell  it  loudest ; 

Brave  and  German  be  we  too ; 
See  the  consecrated  band  here, 
As  brave  Burschen  take  your  stand  here, 

And  the  free-cap  strike  ye  through. 


We  have  here  introduced  Earner's  idea  for  the  sake  of  euphony. 
26 


302  THE  COMMERS. 

See  it  gleaming,  softly  beaming, 

In  my  left  this  stain-free  glave ; 
Thus  I  strike  the  cap  through,  swearing, 
Honour  bright  for  ever  wearing, 

Still  to  be  a  Bursche  brave ! 

During  the  singing  of  the  preceding  stanzas,  the  two  presi- 
dents hold  their  swords  across  each  other,  each  holding  his 
sword  in  his  left  hand,  and  placing  the  fingers  of  the  right  on 
it,  to  ratify  the  oath;  and  this  being  done,  they  pierce  their 
caps'  through,  and  leave  them  hanging  on  the  swords.  While 
they  do  this,  all  sing : 

Thus  thou  strik'st  the  cap  through,  swearing, 

Honour  bright  for  ever  wearing,—- 

Still  to  be  a  Bursche  brave !  • 

Each  president  then  sings  thus  to  his  next  neighbour  while  he 
reaches  him  the  cup : — 

Drinker !  swimming,  bright  o'erbrimming, 
Take  this  Fatherlandish  cup ! 

The  presidents  give  their  swords  each  to  their  next  neighbours. 
These,  who  sit  opposite  to  each  other,  have  risen  from  their 
seats,  and  now  hold  the  swords  which  they  have  received  from 
the  presidents,  crossed,  over  the  table.  The  presidents  continue 
their  song : 

Thy  left  hand  the  keen  sword  bearing, 
Boring  through  the  cap,  and  swearing — 
To  thy  country  drink  it  up ! 

[Here  they  empty  the  cups. 

The  two  who  have  drunk  now  sing, — 

See  it  gleaming,  softly  beaming, 
In  my  left  this  stain-free  glave ! 

ALL  REPEAT — "  See  it  gleaming,  softly  beaming,"  etc. 


THE  COMMERS.  303 

Each  of  the  two  individuals  sings  on : — 

Thus  I  strike  the  cap  through,  swearing1, 
Honour  bright  for  ever  wearing, 
Still  to  be  a  Bursche  brave! 

While  all  repeat  this  in  chorus,  the  caps  of  the  two  are  spitted 
on  the  swords  to  the  former  two.  With  the  last  words  the 
presidents  take  back  the  swords,  and  as  they  hand  the  caps  to 
the  next  two,  sing,  "  Drinker!  swimming,  bright  o'erbrimming," 
etc.  So  go  the  presidents,  repeating  the  same  ceremony  with 
each  opposite  two,  till  they  reach  the  bottom  of  the  table. 
Here  they  exchange  with  each  other  the  swords,  on  which  the 
assembled  caps  are  hanging,  but  without  changing  their  respec- 
tive sides  of  the  table.  As  they  do  this  each  president  sings: 

Come  thou,  drawn  sword,  consecrated, 

Of  freemen  the  weapon  free ! 
With  transpierced  caps  thus  freighted, 

Yield  it  solemnly  to  me. 
Let  us  gaily  it  discumber, 

Cover  each  one  now  his  head ; 

And  unspotted  in  his  bed, 
Till  next  feast-day  let  it  slumber. 

ALL  SING — Up !  ye  feast  companions,  guard  them, 

All  our  hallowed  rites  and  fair ; 
All  your  heart  and  soul  award  them, 

As  stout  men  should  ever  dare  ! 
To  the  feast,  ye  brothers  valiant, — 

Worthy  of  your  fathers,  stand ! 
And  may  he  ne'er  wield  the  brand, 

But  who  noble  is  and  gallant ! 

Each  president  now  reaches  across  the  table  to  the  brother 
sitting  opposite  to  him,  his  cap,  which  he  has  taken  off  the 
sword,  and  stretches  the  sword  over  his  covered  head;  both 
the  presidents  singing : — 

So  take  it  back ; — 
Thy  head  I  now  will  cover, 


304  THE  COMMERS. 

And  stretch  the  sword  it  over, 

And  live  to  this  our  Brother,  hoch ! 
A  dog's-foot  who  insult  him  shall ! 
Wherever  we  shall  meet  him, 
We'll  aye,  as  Brother  greet  him, 

And  live  to  this  our  Brother,  hoch ! 

While  all  are  singing,  the  president  reaches  to  him  whose 
head  he  has  covered,  his  right  hand.  The  presidents  thus 
gradually,  and  in  succession,  cover  all  heads,  till  they  have 
again  arrived  at  that  place  at  the  table  where  they  have  pre- 
sided. Returned  thither,  they  cover  each  other  under  the  same 
ceremonies.  In  conclusion,  all  sing : — 

Rest  thee  from  the  Burschen  feast-rites, 

Now,  thou  dedicated  brand, 
And  be  each  one's  high  endeavour — 

Freedom  for  his  Fatherland ! 
Hail  to  him  who  still  is  haunted 

With  his  father's  fame  in  field ; 
And  the  sword  may  no  one  wield,  \ 

But  the  noble  and  undaunted ! 

This  is  the  simple  description  of  a  Commers,  as  it  is  now 
celebrated ;  and  when  we  ask  what  it  is  which  distinguishes  the 
Commers  from  other  festive  meetings,  the  reply  must  be,  that  it 
consists  in  the  singing  of  "  The  Landsfather,"  as  its  solemn  and 
ceremonial  conclusion.  To  this  celebration  we  certainly  are 
not  at  all  disposed  to  refuse  our  approbation.  It  contributes 
strongly  to  maintain  a  unity  amongst  the  students,  divided  and 
subdivided  as  they  are  into  different  Chores,  and  separated 
again  from  the  private  people — as  the  Camels,  as  a  more  polite 
name,  are  called.  They  contribute  to  bring  back  to  the  con- 
sciousness of  every  one,  that  Germany,  though  separated  into 
so  many  states  and  territories,  is  yet  One  Germany  !  The  hole 
which  is  pierced  in  the  cap  is  at  once  a  symbol  of  death  of  the 
Fatherland,  and  a  memorial  of  Commers  pleasures  enjoyed  in 
companionship  with  those  of  many  names  and  places. 

In  order  to  bring  under  notice  certain  customs  of  the  Com- 


THE  COMMERS.  395 

merses,  which,  however,  are  not  genera],  and  which  in  recent 
years  at  least  have  not  been  practised  in  Heidelberg,  we  may 
here  give  the  regulations  of  the  Beer-Comment  thereupon,  and 
which  indeed  take  up  the  Comment,  where  it  will  be  found  left 
off  at  the  end  of  this  volume,  and  conclude  it. 


TITULUS  X. 

OF  THE  BEER-COMMERS. 

Seotion  142. — Beer-Burschen  alone  can  preside,  and  out-to- 
be-fought  Branders,  who  then,  as  presidents,  have  unlimited 
power.  (By  out-to-be-fought  Branders,  are  to  be  understood 
those  who,  in  this  same  Commers,  shall  be  advanced  to  Young 
Burscheri.) 

Section  143. — The  Beer-commers  proceed  in  the  following 
manner.  After  the  presidents  have  cried,  "  ad  loca !"  and  every 
one  has  seated  himself,  they  command  silence,  and  every  one 
must  pay  the  strictest  attention  to  this  command,  upon  which 
the  song  begins. 

Section.  144. — When  the  song  is  ended,  one  of  the  presidents 
cries  "  Smollis,  ye  brother  presidents,"  which  is  answered  by  the 
other  presidents,  with  "  Fiducit  and  Smollis,  gentlemen ;"  upon 
which  all  the  commanders  answer  "  Fiducit" 

Smollis  is,  in  this  place,  a  kind  of  salutation ;  whence  comes 
the  word  Smolliren,  by  which  it  is  understood  that  the  parties 
drink  to  a  brotherhood ;  so  that  the  two  new  friends  or  brothers, 
from  this  time  forward,  instead  of  the  polite  term  "  You,"  use 
to  each  other  the  familiar  word  "  Thou."  When  two  indivi- 
duals smolliren  with  each  other,  it  is  thus  performed.  The  two 
kling,  or  touch  their  glasses  together,  drink  them  quite  off,  and 

26* 


306  THE  COMMERS. 

then  reach  to  each  other  the  right  hand,  saying  to  each  other, 
"  Be  thou  my  friend." 

When  this  is  done  with  a  number  in  a  Kneipe,  they  are  accus- 
tomed, holding  the  glass  in  one  hand,  to  link  that  arm  with  the 
other  arm  of  the  new  Thou-brother,  and  thus  turning  and  cross- 
ing to  touch  each  other's  glasses  and  drink  them  off,  as  already 
it  is  described  in  the  Renommist. 

The  hands  to  the  Smollis,  entwined  thus  crossing — 
"  Fiducit,  Sir  Brother,"  together  anstossing.* 

It  is  the  custom  in  some  universities,  that  all  students  address 
each  other  with  "  thou."  This  is  called  the  "  Thou-comment," 
in  contradistinction  to  others ;  as  Heidelberg,  where  the  "  You- 
comment"  is  in  use.  But  students  who  in  any  manner  are  often 
associated  in  parties  of  enjoyment,  will  soon  become  "  Thou- 
brothers,"  and  it  arises  of  itself  amongst  those  who  are  of  the 
same  Chore.  Therein  it  is  the  custom  that  the  younger  student 
always  offers  the  Smollis  to  the  elder ;  if  the  contrary  happens, 
it  must  be  regarded  as  a  peculiar  favour.  That  in  the  very  diffe- 
rent paths  of  life  which  succeed  the  university-years,  it  must 
give  occasion  to  some  singular  scenes,  when  the  early  uni- 
versity-companions, who  so  quickly  knit  this  kind  of  bond  of 
amity,  in  after-life  find  themselves  together  again,  and  are 
obliged  to  use  towards  each  other  their  familiar  "  Thou,"  we 
may  well  imagine. 

Section  145. — After  this,  the  song  is  sung  "  The  Foxes  under 
the  bann  have  gone."  Upon  which  the  Crass-Foxes,  with  bare 
heads,  standing  up,  must  each  drink  off  half  a  choppin;  the 

*  Touching  their  glasses.  The  humorous  Schluck  says  that  Schmollis  is  by 
some  derived  from  the  obsolete  word  Schmollen — to  blow  one's-self  up,  to  make 
one's-self  great;  that  is,  before  another,  by  drinking.  Schmollen,  at  the  same 
time  means  to  be  angry,  to  make  a  face,  etc. ;  meanings,  however,  which  are  not 
to  the  purpose.  Others  derive  it  from  the  two  syllables,  Schmal  aus  (schmalus, 
schmollis,)  equivalent  to  clean  out,  that  is,  the  glass  to  the  last  drop,  as  the  old 
song  says — "  There  remains  not  a  nail's  proof  even  within." 


THE  COMMERS.  307 

Brand-Foxes,  with  bare  heads,  sitting,  must  drink  each  a 
choppin. 

Section  146. — When  the  song  is  sung,  one  president  asks  the 
rest,  "  Has  any  of  the  brother  presidents  any  thing  to  dictate,  or 
to  recommend  ?"  Whereupon,  each  of  the  presidents  dictates 
or  commands  to  them  who  have  disturbed  in  any  manner  the 
song  or  the  Commers.  But  they  may  not  command  to  any  one 
more  than  two  choppins  at  one  time. 

Section  147. — If  any  one  does  not  drink  the  quantity  dictated 
to  him  within  five  minutes,  the  president  has  the  right,  without 
further  proceeding,  to  write  him  down  on  the  Beer-tablet  as  a 
Beer-schisser.  The* quantity  which  he  has  yet  to  drink  is  to  be 
added  to  the  four  choppins.  Yet  is  the  Beer-schisser  regarded 
during  the  Commers  as  Beer-honourable. 

Section  148. — If  the  presidents  declare  that  they  have  nothing 
furthef  to  recommend  or  to  dictate,  there  follows  a  short  pause, 
during  which  each  Beer-Bursch  can  fore-drink  to  the  presidents, 
what  these  have  immediately  to  after-drink.  But  during  this 
pause  the  quantity  fore-drunken  to  any  one  of  the  presidents 
must  not  exceed  four  choppins. 

Section  149. — If  all  is  now  drunk,  the  presidents  may  dictate 
nothing  further,  but  they  close  the  presidentship  with  the  ex- 
clamation— "  Ex  est !  Colloquium  /" 

Section  150. — There  may  be  no  fore-drinking  during  the  presi- 
dentship, except  to  the  presidents  during  the  pause  after  their 
dictation  and  the  commendation. 

As  already  stated,  these  customs,  which  must  always  precede 
the  singing  of  "  The  Landsfather,"  are  not  every  where  observed 
in  Commers,  and  do  not  necessarily  belong  to  them.  In  earlier 
times,  the  word  Commers  had  a  wider  comprehension.  It  meant, 
in  general,  a  convival  meeting,  in  which  a  president  had  the 
direction  and  control  of  the  singing  and  drinking.  The  meet- 
ings were  often  of  a  very  rude  character,  and  if  we  even  do 
not  hold  up  the  Commerses  of  the  present  day  as  specimens 
of  temperance,  yet  they  acquire  a  nobler  sentiment  from  the 
solemnity  of  "  The  Landsfather."  To  those  earlier  Commerses, 


308  THE  COMMERS. 

rather  than  to  the  present,  apply  those  satirical  remarks  in 
the  Dissertation  of  the  Old  Schluck.  He  makes  these  obser- 
vations : — 

"  A  Commers  is  a  drinking-meeting,  in  which  a  number  of 
students  elect  one  from  amongst  themselves,  under  whose  presi- 
dency to  sing  and  drink.  The  drinking  goes  on  partly  at  their 
own  cost,  and  partly  at  the  cost  of  others.  He  who  invites 
others,  as  guests,  and  pays  the  shot  (schmaust),*  is  styled  host, 
or  hospes,  from  hoc  and  spes  ;  as  if  some  one  should  say,  I  have 
placed  my  hope  on  him.  He  who  directs  the  drinking-meeting, 
is  president. 

"  A  Commers  is  more  or  less  strict.  Ifris  a  strict  Commers 
when  the  members  of  the  company  mutually  pledge  themselves 
faithfully  to  perform  whatever  the  president  commands,  be  it 
even  with  danger  of  life.  The  signs  of  the  unlimited  power  of 
the  president,  are — 

(1)  A  sceptre,  generally  a  house-door  key,f  with  which  he 
either  dispenses  with  drinking,  or  exhorts  the  delinquent  to  drink 
or  sing,  or  finally  points  out  the  defaulters. 

(2)  A  naked  sword,  which  is  laid  on  the  table,  and  with  which 
the  disobedient  are  compelled  to  obedience.     Hereupon  it  is 
clear : 

(a)  That  no  one,  without  the  permission  of  the  president,  may 
stand  up.     If  any  one  withdraws  himself,  without  having  asked 
permission  aloud,  he  must,  for  his  culpable  stiffneckedness,  drink 
from  two  to  four  glasses. 

(b)  That  no  one  may  refuse  to  drink  the  glasses  which  are 
dictated  to  him,  since,  as  shown  above,  he  is  pledged  to  obe- 
dience, even  at  the  risk  of  his  life.     Quere — Can  one  who  has 
drunken  so  much  that  he  falls  dead  in  the  Commers  be  obliged 
to  drink  more  1    Answer — No  !  since  death  discharges  all  obli- 
gations." 

These  Commerses,  of  an  earlier  and  ruder  time,  are  dis- 

*  Remark  of  the  translator  of  Schluck's  Latin.    "  This  is  false.   No  real  student 
does  pay  his  shot." 

t  A  stick,  or  rather  a  cudgel,  but  a  rapier  is  the  most  reasonable. 


THE  COMMERS.  399 

carded.     In  the  Renommist  such  a  one  is  described,  and  it 
concludes  with  these  lines : 

Worn  fairly  out  with  song,  with  drinking  and  with  noise, 

Go  reeling  now  along,  those  three  wild  roaring  boys. 

Mid  shattered  pipes  and  glass,  their  staggering  way  they  strive, 

Till  in  the  distant  market,  by  lamplight  they  arrive. 

As  other  men  awake,  to  bed  they  take  their  flight, 

And  bellow  to  each  other — "  Sir  Brother,  a  good-night !" 


CHAPTER  XVII. 


THE    SPECIAL   COMMERS.      N 

Bumpers  in  our  left-hands  draining, 
We  will  drink  thy  long  maintaining, 

Ancient,  jovial  Burschendom! 
Swords  in  our  right  hands  extending, 
We  will  fight  for  thy  defending, 

Free  and  gallant  Burschendom ! 

Hauff. 

THESE  lines  of  Hauff's,  who  himself  enjoyed  in  Tiibingen 
the  pleasures  of  the  Burschendom  with  a  fresh  spirit,  express 
the  sentiments  which  altogether  in  the  life  of  the  student,  but 
especially  in  its  most  beautiful  feast,  the  Commers,  are  felt  and 
abound.  We  have  described  the  General  Commers ;  and  we 
have  now  to  make  our  readers  acquainted  with  the  so-called 
Special  Commers,  that  which  each  individual  corps  celebrates 
at  the  commencement  and  conclusion  of  each  Semester.  These 
Commerses  are  seldom  held  in  the  city.  We  see  a  jocund  train 
issuing  forth  from  one  of  the  city  gates.  A  troop  goes  before 
on  horseback,  who,  in  earlier  times,  were  still  more  distin- 
guished by  their  peculiar  style,  but  who  still  may  sometimes  be 
seen  in  full  costume,  that  is,  in  buckskins  and  huge  jack-boots, 
Polonaise  frocks ;  on  their  heads,  their  Cerevis  caps ;  over  their 
breasts,  wearing  the  broad  Chore-band,  while  they  carry  in 
their  right  hands  their  naked  swords.  The  rest  follow  them  in 
carriages  drawn  by  two  or  four  horses ;  or  the  Senior  precedes 
in  a  four  or  six-horse  equipage,  and  the  rest  follow  in  two-horse 


THE  SPECIAL  COMMERS.  3H 

ones.  In  their  customary  negligent  student-dress,  they  lounge 
at  their  ease  in  their  carriages,  smoking  their  long  pipes.  The 
Foxes  show  themselves  especially  consequential,  since  it  is  the 
first  time  that  they  have  been  privileged  to  present  themselves 
to  the  eyes  of  the  astonished  world  in  such  a  public  procession. 
The  Pawk-doctor  is  always  invited  to  this  festivity,  and  fre- 
quently honours  the  Chore  with  his  presence ;  but  the  Red 
Fisherman  is  an  invariable  attendant,  arrayed  in  the  oddest 
style,  as  the  black  frock-coat,  and  his  other  habiliments,  by  no 
means  correspond  with  the  open  breast  and  outlying  shirt.  He 
is  generally  posted  as  servant  behind  the  last  carriage. 

If  now  the  reader  were,  on  such  a  day,  already  at  Neckar- 
steinach,  so  might  he,  from  the  little  pavilion  in  the  garden  of 
the  Gasthouse*  of  the  Harp,  right  commodiously  observe  the 
approaclj  of  such  a  train,  as  it  emerges  from  one  of  the  windings 
of  the  road  which  follows  the  serpentine  course  of  the  Neckar, 
and  permits  him  even  from  afar  to  see  the  flashing  of  the  drawn 
swords,  and  the  shimmering  of  the  coloured  caps  and  Chore- 
bands.  Or  he  sees  the  new  guests  approaching  in  a  barge 
which  they  have  mounted  at  Neckargemiind,  where  they  have 
left  their  horses  and  carriages.  The  barge  is  hung  with  gar- 
lands and  festoons,  pennons  stream  from  the  masts ;  the  sons  of 
the  Muses,  in  their  many-coloured  costume,  are  picturesquely 
grouped,  and  some  of  them  are  singing  in  the  overflowing  of 
their  spirits  to  the  sound  of  the  jocund  music. 

The  inhabitants  see  gladly  these  guests  arrive  in  the  place ; 
as  the  Burschen,  on  one  such  day,  make  a  greater  expenditure, 
or  in  common  parlance,  moult  more  feathers  than  as  many 
honourable  inhabitants  of  the  little  town  do  in  a  whole  year. 
On  this  account,  their  approach  is  first  announced  to  the  spec- 
tator in  the  garden  of  the  Harp,  by  the  firing  of  small  cannon, 
which  are  planted  for  the  purpose  of  doing  all  possible  honour 
to  these  high  guests,  on  the  Dielsberg,  a  town  opposite,  situated 
on  a  lofty  conical  hill,  where  the  earliest  view  of  the  approaching 
train  is  obtained,  and  by  others  fired  from  one  of  the  old  castles 

*  Inn. 


312  THE  SPECIAL 

of  Neckarsteinach.  The  garden  of  the  inn  now  speedily  swarms 
with  the  jovial  Burschen,  who  here  play  off  all  sorts  of  pranks 
and  whims. 

But  within,  the  whole  house  is  in  the  most  universal  bustle. 
House-servants  and  waiters  run  to  and  fro ;  in  the  kitchen  all 
the  hands  of  the  cooks  are  in  active  agitation,  in  order  to  fulfil 
the  command  of  the  landlady.  There  will  sit  a  sleepy  maid 
nodding  in  a  chair,  since  for  two  days,  that  is,  since  the  Com- 
mers  was  announced  to  them,  there  has  been  no  sleep  in  the 
eyes  of  any  of  the  ministering  spirits ;  but  she  is  quickly  roused 
up  with  a  vengeance  in  order  to  assist  in  the  general  activity. 
All,  however,  is  still  and  solitary  in  the  yard ;  for  the  poor 
feather-cattle  have  been  compelled  to  yield  up  their  young  lives 
in  order  to  parade  on  the  table  of  these  honoured  and  swarming 
guests.  Above,  in  the  great  hall,  is  a  long  table  covered. 
Every  window  is  adorned  with  green  and  flowery  garlands  and 
festoons,  and  at  that  end  of  the  hall  where  the  seat  of  honour  is 
placed,  there  is  emblazoned  on  the  wall  the  great  and  painted 
coat-of-arms  of  the  Verbindung,  embellished  with  flowers  and 
ribands.  The  musicians  now  take  their  places  in  the  orchestra 
above ;  the  sons  of  the  Muses  appear  in  the  hall,  and  the  feast 
is  opened.  After  the  cloth  is  drawn  the  proceedings  at  table  are 
such  as  we  have  described  in  the  General  Commers,  except  that, 
at  this  Commers,  no  beer  is  drunk,  but  wine  only;  and  you 
may  soon  hear  the  report  of  outflying  Champagne  corks,  as  the 
toasts  of  the  Chore  are  given,  or  those  upon  and  connected  with 
the  Land  Prince,  when  the  Commers  is  celebrated  on  his  birth- 
day. 

In  the  so-called  Foundation  Commers,  it  is  customary  for  the 
Senior  to  deliver  a  short  speech,  in  which  he  takes  a  review  of 
the  fortunes  of  the  Verbindung,  or  Chore,  from  its  establishment, 
and  particularly  mentions  the  names  of  those  who  have  be- 
longed to  it,  and  are  now  gone  forth  from  it  into  busy  life. 

As  they  do  not  return  from  such  a  Commers,  at  the  earliest, 
till  the  noon  or  the  evening  of  the  next  day,  all  kind  of  follies 
and  madcap  playfulness  are  resorted  to,  to  make  the  time  pass 
merrily.  Amongst  these  may  be  classed  the  "  Lord  of  Fools." 


COMMERS.  313 

A  great  throne  is  built  up  of  tables  and  chairs,  upon  which  one 
of  the  students  is  placed.  He  is  equipped  as  a  king,  with  his 
crown,  sceptre,  and  other  insignia.  The  others  are  his  devoted 
subjects,  who  bring  him  a  great  humper,  or  large  glass,  such  as 
every  Chore  possesses.  The  Prince  of  Fools  now  sings : — 


THE  PRINCE  OF  FOOLS. 

PRINCE. — I  am  the  Prince  of  fooling, 
Here,  o'er  the  topers  ruling ; 
And  ye  the  gods  do  send  on, 
My  Princeship  to  attend  on. 

ALL. —    To  wait  on  your  divineness, 
With  wine  of  every  fineness, 
That's  why  we  here  are  standing, 
All  at  your  dread  commanding. 

PRINCE. — Ye  sportsmen  with  your  thunder 
Shoot  me  the  foxes  under, 
And  ye  there  all  before  us, 
Blow  in  your  horns  a  chorus. 

ALL. —    'Ith  horn,  'ith  horn,  'ith  hunter's  horn, 
'Ith  horn,  'ith  horn,  'ith  hunter's  horn, 
Drink  off,  drink  off,  thou  Prince  of  Fools 
Drink  off,  drink  off,  thou  Prince  of  Fools. 


As  they  sing  this,  he  empties  his  humper. 

THE  PRINCE. — What  helps  me  now  my  lofty  throne, 
My  sceptre,  and  my  Burschen-crown  ? 
What  helps  me  now  my  high  command  ? 
I  lay  it  down  in  N.  N.'s  hand  ! 

He  now  descends  from  the  throne,  and  the  next  takes  his 
place,  till  it  has  thus  gone  the  whole  round. 

27 


314  THE  SPECIAL 

The  convivial  meeting  sits  till  late  in  the  night ;  and  the  next 
day  they  amuse  themselves  with  all  kinds  of  frolics  and  merri- 
ments, in  which  the  Red  Fisherman  often  becomes  the  butt  of 
no  gentle  jokes.  They  sometimes  make  processions  through 
the  village  at  the  head  of  which  one  of  them  rides  on  the  back 
of  the  Red  Fisherman,  or  on  an  ass.  They  climb  the  neigh- 
bouring ruined  castles,  which  are  perched  on  the  mountains, 
and  let  their  songs  thence  resound  over  the  country. 

These  gambols  and  outbreaks  of  youthful  spirits,  full  of  life, 
strength,  and  enjoyment,  and  which  thus  are  ready  to  overleap 
all  bounds  in  the  excitement  of  leaving  behind  for  a  day  or  so 
all  study,  and  giving  themselves  up  in  fine  weather,  and  beau- 
tiful scenery,  to  the  full  swing  of  their  fancies  and  feelings, 
especially  such  a  troop  of  youngsters  being  together,  have 
always  characterized  the  students.  An  old  popular  ballad  de- 
scribes their  pranks  in  these  rural  Commerses,  as  far  back  as 
1650 ;  probably  then  a  little  more  freely  indulged  in  than  at 
present, 

WAYS  OF  THE  STUDENTS. 

Queer  chaps  are  these  students,  say  folks  every  where, 
Although  you  should  have  them  but  once  in  the  year ; 
They  make  in  the  village  such  riot  and  reek, 
There's  nought  else  left  for  us  but  plague  for  a  week. 

Now  must  we  be  caring  for  St.  Mary's  day, 
And  every  one  is  wishing  that  Galli  come  may ; 
Then  come  they  with  swords  and  fowling-pieces  too, 
And  make  in  the  village  a  horrid  to-do. 

There's  nothing  then  in  safety ;  no  pigeon,  no  hen, 

As  though  they  were  made  but  for  plunder  of  men; 

No  goose  dare  even  venture  out  into  the  meadow, 

These  gents  with  their  swords  would  soon  whip  off  its  head  oh. 

Are  gardens  with  boards  and  bars  all  fenced  too  1 
They  burst  them  asunder  that  the  sun  doth  shine  through ; 
In  clambering  for  apples  the  trees  too  they  break, 
'Tis  well  if  each  home  but  a  pocketful  take. 


COMMERS.  315 

With  fire  and  with  powder  we're  in  constant  fears, 
That  e'en  our  small  house  be  burnt  over  our  ears ; 
Their  crackers  they  let  on  our  roofs  hop  and  bound, 
And  a  devil  cares  not  though  they  burn  to  the  ground. 

Has  one  a  good  dog  by  his  house-door  to  stay, 
And  that  from  his  chain  could  not  break  away, 
Straight  let  they  him  loose,  when,  troth  'twere  no  need, 
Potz  hagel !  they've  shot,  and  the  poodle  is  dead  ! 

Students  'ith  Wirthshouse,  are  jolly  and  able, 

For  all  that  they  need  is  a  great  mighty  table ; 

They  drink  and  they  shout,  as  the  house  theirs  had  been : 

They  drink  and  they  cry  till  they're  sky-blue  and  green. 

Now  they  talk  Lapodeinish  !*  I  know  not  what  'tis ; 
But  one  knowa  very  well,  it  is  we  that  they  quiz — 
Now  they  dance  in  the  market,  they  leap  and  they  play, 
And  take  from  the  hinds  their  own  dance-place  away. 

*  Then  turn  the  men-servants,  and  cudgel  them  out, 
Till  like  mice  they  are  running  the  streets  all  about ; 
They  gather  to  battle  in  furious  throngs, 
And  smite,  lunge,  and  cry  with  right  deafening  lungs. 

Then  they're  off  through  the  fields  with  their  play  to  undo  them, 
'Tis  just  as  if  thunder  should  tear  its  way  through  them, 
They  tread  down  the  corn-field,  they  don't  understand, 
What  'tis  to  eat  black  bread  raised  by  their  own  hand. 

Is  a  horse  in  the  meadow,  his  strength  to  recruit  1 
The  students  soon  seize  on  the  poor  weary  brute, 
They're  up,  and  their  heels  in  his  sides  go  ding-dong, 
Ah !  might  he,  at  least,  but  go  slowly  along  ! 

Two  centuries  have  produced  a  proportionate  improvement 
in  the  students;  though  as  full  of  fun  as  ever,  the  country 
people  have  nothing  like  the  wanton  mischief  here  recorded  to 
fear  from  them. 

The  Commers  then,  being  brought  to  a  close,  they  generally 

*  Lateinisch  (Latin.) 


316  THE  SPECIAL 

return  by  boat  to  the  city  of  the  Muses.  If  this  is  in  the 
evening,  the  barge  is  illuminated,  and  when  they  approach  the 
city,  fireworks  are  played  off.  As  they  land  they  proceed  to 
their  Kneip,  and  there  wind  up  the  feast.  On  the  arrangements 
of  a  Kneip,  nothing  further  is  necessary  to  be  said,  as  we,  in 
becoming  acquainted  with  the  Beer-tablet,  beheld  the  only 
particular  in  which  it  differs  from  other  drinking-places ;  but, 
in  speaking  of  the  different  drinks  that  are  consumed  in  a 
Kneiping,  we  must  not  forget  the  Crambambuli.  In  order  to 
prepare  this  liquor,  an  earthenware  dish  is  used,  into  which  a 
sufficient  quantity  of  sugar  is  poured,  and  it  is  then  filled  up 
with  rum.  It  is  then  set  fire  to ;  and  the  company,  who  sit 
round  the  flaming  dish,  sing — 

THE  CRAMBAMBULI  SONG. 

Crambambuli,  this  is  the  title 

Of  that  good  drink  we  love  the  best, 
It  is  the  means  of  proof  most  vital, 

When  evil  fortunes  us  molest. 
In  evening  late,  in  morning  free, 
I  drink  my  glass  Crambambuli. 

Have  I  into  the  inn  ascended, 

Most  like  some  noble  cavalier  1 
I  leave  the  bread  and  roast  untended, 

And  bid  them  bring  the  corkscrew  here. 
Then  blows  the  coachman — trantanti — 
Unto  a  glass  Crambambuli. 

Are  head  and  stomach  both  distracted  ; 

For  eating  have  I  little  zest ; 
A  plaguy  cold  have  I  contracted  ; 

Have  I  catarrh  within  my  chest  1 
What  need  the  doctor  trouble  me, 
I  drink  my  glass  Crambambuli ! 

Were  I  a  prince  of  power  unbounded, 

Like  Kaiser  Maximilian, 
For  me  were  there  an  order  founded, 

'Tis  this  device  I'd  hang  thereon : — 


COMMERS.  317 

Toujours  fidele,  et  sans  souci, 
C'est  1'ordre  du  Crambarabuli ! 

Comes  there  no  bill  my  needs  to  better  7 

Have  I  at  play  my  money  lost  7 
My  maiden,  writes  she  not  a  letter ! 

Come  grievous  tidings  by  the  post  7 
Then  drink  I,  from  anxiety, 
A  brimming  glass  Crambambuli. 

Ah  !  if  the  dear  old  folks  but  knew  it, 
How  we  young  Gents,  their  sons,  were  stead, 

How  we  must  pinch  and  sorely  rue  it, 
They'd  weep  till  their  old  eyes  were  red. 

Whilst  make  themselves  the  Filii 

So  bene  by  Crambambuli. 

And  has  the  Bursch  his  cash  expended  7 

To  sponge  the  Philistine's  his  plan. 
And  thinks  it  folly  all  extended, 

From  Burschen  unto  Beggarman. 
Since  this  is  the  philosophy 
In  spirit  of  Crambambuli. 

Shall  I  for  fame  and  freedom  stand  then ; 

For  Burschen  weal  the  sword  lift  free  7 
Quick  blinks  the  steel  in  my  right  hand  then, 

A  friend  will  stand  and  second  me. 
To  him  I  say,  Mon  cher  ami, 
Before  a  glass  Crambambuli. 

It  grieves  me  sore,  ye  foolish-hearted, 

That  ye  love  not,  and  drink  not  wine; 
To  asses  are  ye  now  converted, 

And  might  be  angels  all  divine. 
Drink  water  like  the  cattle  free, 
And  think  it  is  Crambambuli. 

Crambambuli,  it  still  shall  cheer  me, 

When  every  other  joy  is  past, 
When  o'er  the  glass  Friend  Death  draws  near  me, 

And  mars  my  pleasure  at  the  last 
I'll  drink  with  him  in  companie 
The  last  glass  of  Crambambuli. 
27* 


318  THE  SPECIAL  COMMERS. 

Then  who  'gainst  us,  Crambambulisten, 
His  spiteful  mouth  with  envy  screws, 

We  hold  him  for  no  kind  of  Christian, 
Since  he  God's  blessings  doth  abuse. 

I'd  give  him,  though  for  life  cried  he, 

No  single  drop  Crambambuli. 


During  the  singing  the  rum  has  burnt  out,  and  the  beverage, 
of  a  syrupy  consistence,  is  ladled  into  the  glasses.  At  eleven 
o'clock  at  night,  which  is  the  hour  of  the  police,  the  kneips  are 
closed.  For  some  years  it  has  been  the  practice  in  Heidelberg 
that  a  bell  should  be  rung  at  this  hour,  which  should  be  the 
signal  for  all  landlords  to  close  their  houses.  At  first  this  order 
received  much  opposition  from  the  students,  and  they  endea- 
voured to  make  it  ridiculous.  As  the  order  was,  that  at  eleven 
the  bells  should  be  rung,  on  its  first  appearance  in  the  Heidel- 
berg wochenblatt  (newspaper),  at  this  hour  all  the  dogs  of  the 
students  ran  about  the  city  with  bells  hung  to  their  necks,  and 
their  masters,  to  fulfil  the  order  to  the  letter,  began,  to  the  terror 
and  amaze  of  the  inhabitants,  to  set  all  the  bells  of  the  private 
houses  in  full  swing. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


NEW  YEAR  S  EVE. 


The  year's  last  hour  retreating, 

Peals  out  with  solemn  sound ; 
Drink  brothers !  your  last  greeting, 

And  wish  him  blessings  round. 
'Tis  gone !  with  gray  years  blended, 
That  are  for  ever  ended. 
It  brought  much  gladness,  many  woes, 
And  leaves  us  nearer  to  our  close. 

Voss. 


THE  last  evening  of  the  year  had  arrived.  It  found  the  two 
friends  Hoffmann  and  Freisleben  in  the  room  of  the  latter, 
where  the  friends  were  accustomed  gladly  to  assemble.  "  Shall 
I  light  the  lamp?"  asked  Freisleben.  "No!  let  us  sit  in  the 
dark.  When  the  eye  does  not  distract  itself  with  outward  ob- 
jects, it  then  turns  with  delight  to  those  images  which  memory 
brings  before  the  mind."  So  the  two  sate;  and  they  thought 
over  all  which  this  year  had  given  and  taken  away;  on  all, 
after  which  they  had  striven,  and  which  they  had  achieved; 
and  on  much,  after  which  they  had  desired  to  strive  and 
accomplish.  Each  was  lost  in  this  internal  review,  and  the 
silence  was  only  broken  by  one  of  the  friends  being  so  power- 
fully seized  with  the  recollection  of  the  past,  that  he  must  com- 
municate his  feeling  to  the  other.  "  So  then,"  said  Freisleben, 
"  another  year  of  this  beautiful  university  life  is  over !  and 


320  THE  STUDENT'S 

when  I  call  to  mind  that  this  year  is  a  quarter,  or  a  fifth  of  the 
whole,  the  words  of  a  German  writer  are  irresistibly  forced 
upon  me  : — '  The  world  may  easily  roll  on,  as  it  has  hitherto 
done,  yet  for  a  million  years ;  and  ia  that  period,  five  thousand 
years  would  be  exactly  proportionate  to  a  quarter  of  a  year  in 
the  life  of  a  man  of  fifty, — scarcely  a  twelfth  of  our  university 
life  !'  What  have  I  done  in  the  last  quarter  of  a  year  ?  Eaten, 
drunken,  electrified,  made  a  calendar,  laughed  over  the  tricks 
of  a  kitten,  and  so  are  five  thousand  years  of  this  little  world 
run  out,  in  which  I  move !" 

HOFFMANN. — Away  with  this  calculation !  To  embellish  the 
life  of  our  friends,  and  to  enjoy  ourselves  that  life  cheerily,  that 
is  the  business  of  existence. 

FREISLEBEN. — The  time  spent  at  the  university  is  certainly 
the  most  lovely  time  of  our  life ;  but  even  in  that  I  am  amazed 
to-day  how  one  can  be  so  merry,  when  one  recollects  how 
much  more  of  unpleasant  than  pleasant  the  year  has  brought. 

HOFFMANN. — There  I  differ.  Past  pain  is  pleasant  in  me- 
mory, and  past  pleasure  is  pleasure  both  future  and  present. 
Thus,  it  is  only  present  and  future  pain  that  troubles  us;  a 
strong  presumption  of  a  sensible  preponderance  of  enjoyment 
in  the  world,  which  is  augmented  by  this  circumstance,  that 
we  are  constantly  endeavouring  to  create  enjoyment,  whose 
fruition  we  can,  in  many  cases,  foretell  with  tolerable  certainty, 
while,  on  the  contrary,  future  pain  can  be  much  seldomer  prog- 
nosticated exactly. 

"  Yes,  to  be  sure !  That  is  now  clear,  and  I  understand  it," 
said  Von  Kronen,  who  had  caught  the  end  of  this  demonstra- 
tion, "  but  that  on  which  I  have  been  reflecting  is  not  yet  clear 
to  me.  Perhaps  you  gentlemen  who  to-day  are  in  so  philoso- 
phical a  mood  can  enlighten  me  upon  it." 

FREISLEBEN. — What  will  come  of  it  then  ? 

VON  KRONEN. — The  phenomenon  is  one  of  the  most  myste- 
rious in  nature.  Yet — 

HOFFMANN. — Only  out  with  it ! 

VON  KRONEN. — Tell  me  then  how  it  comes  to  pass  that  cats 
have  holes  in  their  skins  exactly  where  their  eyes  are? 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  321 

HOFFMANN. — Thou  whimsical  herring ! 

VON  KRONEN. — Without  a  joke,  this  is  one  of  the  three 
riddles  that  I  will  lay  before  you.  If  you  can  solve  them,  you 
shall  smoke  the  whole  evening  genuine  Havanna  cigars,  that  I 
have  received  from  Hamburgh  as  a  Christmas  present. 

FREISLEBEN. — That's  worth  something ! 

HOFFMANN. — Samiel,  help ! 

VON  KRONEN. — The  first  you  have ;  so  solve  it. 

FREISLEBEN. — I  will  explain  it  to  thee.  The  nose  has  here 
stretched  the  skin  too  much  outwards,  so  that  it  has  cracked  it 
on  both  sides,  exactly  where  the  eyes  are. 

VON  KRONEN. — Well  hit !  Now  for  the  second.  Why  do 
the  hares  sleep  with  open  eyes  ? 

HOFFMANN. — Because  their  skin  is  too  short  to  permit  them 
to  shut  their  eyes. 

VON  KRONEN. — Bravo !  Now  the  third.  Where  go  the 
cats  when  they  are  three  years  old  ? 

HOKFMANN. — With  thy  confounded  cats !  If  the  talk  was  of 
foxes,  or  of  some  other  reasonable  cattle  ? 

VON  KRONEN. — Yes !  dear  Lord  Abbot*  put  it  together,  or  I 
must  pronounce  sentence  of  asses  on  you. 

HOFFMANN. — Stop!  I  have  it.  They  go  into  their  fourth 
year! 

VON  KRONEN  : — 

O  damsel !  O  damsel !  O  damsel !  now  marry  I  thee, 
Novr  marry  I  thee ! 

MR.  TRAVELLER  enters. — How  are  you,  gentlemen  ?  What 
an  Egyptian  darkness  there  is  in  the  streets !  It  was  all  I  could 
do  to  find  the  house. 

HOFFMANN. — There  is  moonshine  in  the  calendar  to-day. 

FREISLEBEN. — The  police  regulations  in  our  city  are  very 
much  like  the  clapper-mills  in  the  cherry-trees.  They  stand 


*  Bttrger's  Abbot,  with  the  king's  three  questions.    The  same  legend  as  the 
Abbot  of  Canterbury  and  King  John. 


322  THE  STUDENT'S 

still  when  the  rattle  is  most  needed,  and  make  a  terrible  larum 
when,  on  account  of  the  high  wind,  the  sparrows  don't  come. 

VON  KRONEN. — Tell  me,  Hoffmann,  can  a  man  blush  red  in 
the  dark? 

HOFFMANN. — Another  hard  question !  That  a  man  may  be- 
come pale  with  fear  in  the  dark,  I  can  believe ;  but  blush  red 
scarcely,  since  a  man  may  be  pale  of  himself,  but  blush  only 
on  account  of  himself  and  another. 

VON  KRONEN. — Ay,  that  is  true ;  but  the  question  whether 
ladies  can  become  red  in  the  dark  is  a  very  difficult  question ; 
at  least,  one  that  cannot  be  settled  in  the  light 

FREISLEBEN. — Ask  the  magistrate  why  he  does  not  light  the 
streets  better ;  that  would  be  much  more  serviceable  than  these 
subtleties. 

VON  KRONEN. — Dear  Freisleben,  in  a  country  where  the 
eyes  of  people  who  are  in  love  shine  in  the  dark,  there  is  no 
need  of  lanterns. 

FREISLEBEN. — For  thy  satirical  impertinence  thou  shalt  go 
into  the  streets  with  me,  on  a  voyage  of  discovery  after  some 
red  wine.  We  will  make  booty  of  some  bottles  in  one  of  the 
kneips,  and  then  manufacture  some  glee-wine.  It  will  relish 
with  the  cigars. 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — Capital !  Hoffmann !  let  us  hasten  out  too. 
We  will  buy  sugar  and  spices. 

HOFFMANN. — Good !  So  every  one  makes  himself  a  useful 
member  of  society. 

In  a  short  time  all  were  again  assembled;  the  table  was 
moved  forward  to  the  stove.  A  light  odour  of  cigars  filled  the 
room,  and  the  wine,  which  was  played  around  by  the  flames  in 
the  little  coffee-kettle,  began  to  sing.  The  cloves  were  now 
thrown  in,  the  guests  each  took  sugar,  and  Freisleben  filled  the 
glasses.  Hoffmann  had  brought  a  guitar  with  him,  and  accom- 
panied on  it  the  following  song : — 

Down,  down  with  the  sorrows 

And  troubles  of  earth ! 
For  what  is  our  life  made 

But  drinking  and  mirth ! 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE. 

Drink,  and  be  glad,  sirs, 

Laugh  and  be  gay ; 
Keep  sober  to-morrow, 

But  drink  to-day! 

Love's  a  deceiver, — 

He'll  cheat  if  he  can ; 
Sweet  innocent  woman 

Is  wiser  than  man  ! 

Trust  her  not,  trust  her  not, 

She  will  deceive ! 
Who  wins  her  may  gather 

The  sea  in  a  sieve  ! 

Laying  up  money 

Is  labour  and  care  ; 
All  you  have  toiled  for 

Is  spent  by  the  heir  ! 

Knowledge  is  wearisome, 

Save  when  the  wise 
Study  whole  volumes 

In  beautiful  eyes ! 

So,  down  with  the  sorrows 

And  troubles  of  earth  ! 
For  what  was  our  life  made 

But  drinking  and  mirth ! 

Then  drink  and  be  glad,  sirs, 

Laugh  and  be  gay  ; 
Keep  sober  to-morrow, 

But  drink  to-day. 

"  SEVEN  TEMPTATIONS."     BY  MRS.  Howrrr. 


All  repeat  the  last  verse,  and  drink. 

FREISLEBEN. — Mr.  Traveller,  that  song  originates  in  your 
Fatherland.  She  who  wrote  it  shall  "  live-hoch !"  (They 
touch  glasses.)  Now,  Von  Kronen,  let  us  have  a  German  one. 


324  THE  STUDENT'S 

Von  Kronen  sings : — 

THE  SONG  OF  WINE. 

The  song  of  wine  is  short  and  fine, 
And  joy  and  drinking  doth  combine. 
Oh !  he  who  cannot  sing  it  yet, 
Will  learn  it  now  we  here  are  met. 

The  song  of  wine,  etc. 

Ye  chat  not  long  your  cups  among ; 
Wine  fires  the  spirit  into  song, 
He  who  can  sing,  high  be  his  laud, — 
He  who  sings  not  can  hum  accord. 

Ye  chat  not  long,  etc. 

Wine  clears  the  blood,  gives  bolder  mood, 
And  makes  the  heart  all  mild  and  good. 
Wine  is  the  death-blow  to  old  Care ! 
A  glorious  call  to  do  and  dare ! 

Wine  clears,  etc. 

The  wine-elate,  without  estate, 
And  without  castle  's  rich  and  great 
Yes,  gods  we  are  when  wine  flows  clear, 
And  old  Olympus  yet  stands  here. 

The  wine-elate,  etc. 

Join  hand  in  hand;  in  Bacchus'  land 
All  men  are  free,  and  equal  stand. 
O  magic  drink !  thou  noble  wine ! 
The  golden  age  for  ever's  thine. 

Join  hand  in  hand,  etc. 

• 

FREISLEBEN. — Our  absent  friends  shall  live!  (They  touch 
glasses.) 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — Will  they  return  soon  ? 

VON  KRONEN. — We  expect  them  to-morrow,  and  their  Christ- 
mas presents,  which  their  Frau  Mamma  and  Mamsel  have 
given  them.  Pittschaffl  will  be  well  packaged  again,  who 
would  not  on  any  account  fail  to  spend  his  Christmas-eve  in  his 
Father-city. 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  325 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — The  exchange  of  gifts  at  Christmas,  as  it 
is  practised  in  Germany,  pleases  me  much ;  and  I  am  especially 
delighted  with  the  Christ-tree. 

VON  KRONEN. — Have  you  seen  the  huge  tree  at  the  Sattler- 
miillerei,*  where  the  Hanseatic  students  hold  their  Christmas  1 

MR.  TRAVELLER. — No.  Do  the  students  then  also  present 
each  other  with  Christmas  gifts  ? 

VON  KRONEN. — One  or  other  of  the  Chores  frequently  amuse 
themselves  with  this  sport.  I  recollect  that  a  society  to  which 
I  belonged  agreed  to  exchange  Christmas  gifts,  of  which  none 
was  to  cost  more  than  six  kreutzer — twopence  English  money. 
The  most  droll  things  imaginable  were  brought  on  the  occasion. 

HOFFMANN. — The  glee-wine  is  famous;  it  warms  one  right 
through  and  through.  Let  us  sing  a  beautiful  song.  He  plays 
and  all  sing. 


TABLE-SONG. 

FROM  GOETHE. 

Heavenly  joy  entrances  me 

Far  beyond  exploring; 
Shall  it  one  day  bear  me  up 

To  the  star-lands  soaring! 
Yet,  in  truth,  remaining  here, 

More  is  to  my  liking; 
By  the  wine-glass  and  the  song— 

On  the  table  striking. 

Friends,  I  pray  ye,  wonder  not 

At  my  thus  deciding; 
For  no  blessing  yet  is  like — 

On  the  earth  abiding. 
Therefore  swear  I  solemnly, 

Without  all  concealing, 
That  I  shall  not  recklessly 

Out  of  life  be  stealing. 

»  The  Wirthshaus  of  Sadler  Muller. 
28 


326  THE  STUDENTS 

But  as  here  we  all  have  met 

Time  to  speed  with  pleasure ; 
Should,  methinks,  the  Beakers  chime 

To  the  Poet's  measure. 
Good  friends  must,  a  hundred  miles, 

Move  from  one  another ; 
Therefore  you  met  here,  stosst-an 

Brother  as  with  Brother ! 

Live  then  he  who  is  of  peace 

And  of  good  a  donor ! 
First  and  foremost  to  our  king, 

His  of  right's  the  honour. 
'Gainst  all  enemies,  the  state, 

Still  he  doth  defend  it; 
To  uphold  it  planneth  much; 

Much  more  to  extend  it. 

Now  the  next,  sflute  I  her, — 

Her  the  true  alone  one  ! 
And  let  each,  as  gallant  knight, 

Think  upon  his  own  one. 
Should  a  lovely  maiden  guess 

Her  of  whom  I'm  thinking ; 
Let  her  archly  nod  to  me — 

To  her  own  love  drinking. 

To  our  friends ! — the  two  or  three — 

Be  the  third  cheer  voiced, 
Who  with  us  in  sunny  days 

Quietly  rejoiced. 
They  who  from  our  night  the  gloom 

Swift  and  lightly  scatter — 
Lift  to  them  a  hearty — hoch  ! 

Old  friends,  or  the  latter. 

Broader  now  rolls  on  the  stream 

With  augmented  billows ; 
"  Live  they,  hoch !"  resound  the  cheer 

Unto  all  good  fellows. 
They  who  with  combined  strength 

Plant  themselves  together; 
In  the  sunshine  of  good  luck; 

In  the  worst  of  weather ! 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  337 

As  we  are  collected  here, 

Thousands  are  collected : 
May  their  sports  and  joys  run  high — 

Higher  than  expected. 
From  the  spring  unto  the  sea 

Many  mills  are  turning, 
Wider  far ! — my  heart  streams  out — 

For  the  whole  world  burning ! 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

NEW  TEAR'S  EVE  CONTINUED — SKETCH  OF  THE  HISTORY  OP  HEIDEL- 
BERG UNIVERSITY. 

THE  company  were  raised  into  the  best  spirits  by  the  song. 
The  splendid  cigars,  such  as  seldom  wander  to  the  banks  of  the 
Neckar;  the  sparkling  wine,  which  welled  out  of  the  little 
machine  as  inexhaustibly  as  cash  out  of  Fortunatus'  purse — all 
contributed  to  render  the  conversation,  which  turned  on  the 
recent  festivity,  animated  and  delicious.  The  Christmas  fes- 
tival, one  of  the  very  few  people's  feasts,  which  divided  Germany 
yet  maintained  inviolably  universal,  had  given  especial  pleasure  to 
the  Englishman,  to  whom  it  was  a  novel  circumstance.  Above 
all,  he  could  not  sufficiently  extol  a  walk  which  his  friends  had 
taken  him  on  Christmas-eve. 

He  who  has  ever  witnessed  in  Germany  a  celebration  of 
Christ's  gifts  to  the  children,  knows  well  the  joyful  expectation 
with  which  the  children  await  in  an  adjoining  room  the  ecstatic 
moment  when  the  doors  of  Paradise  shall  be  opened  to  them. 
How  beats  their  hearts,  when  at  length  the  bell  rings,  after 
whose  sound  they  have  for  weeks  long  yearned,  and  in  antici- 
pation of  which,  they  have  often  calculated  how  frequently  the 
Sandman*  must  do  his  duty  before  that  moment  arrived.  And 
now,  the  instant  that  it  is  become  dark,  the  impatience  of  the 

*  It  is  a  popular  expression  in  Germany  when  children  are  rubbing  their  eyes, 
a  symptom  that  they  are  sleepy  and  ready  for  bed — that  the  Sandman  has  thrown 
sand  in  their  eyes. 


N0W  YEAR'S  EVE.  339 

little  ones  can  be  no  more  restrained,  and  in  all,  even  the  poor- 
est houses,  the  Bescherung,  or  distribution  of  the  presents,  be- 
gins. The  shutters  on  this  evening  are  closed  in  scarcely  any 
of  the  houses,  so  that  in  the  dark,  as  you  pass  along  the  streets, 
you  see  into  the  rooms  lit  up  and  embellished  for  the  occasion. 
The  Christ-tree  covered  with  lights,  throws  its  beams  into  the 
very  darkness  of  the  street ;  and  the  jubilant  cries  of  the  rush- 
ing-in  children  are  heard,  as  transported  with  the  view  of  their 
individual  presents,  they  fly  to  each  other  to  show  them.  This 
scene  his  friends  had  brought  to  his  observation,  and  he  could 
not  sufficiently  thank  them  for  it. 

A  modest  supper  was  now  brought  out ;  the  friends  seated 
themselves  round  the  table,  and  while  they  addressed  themselves 
to  discuss  it,  they  heard  the  reports  of  pistols  every  where  re- 
sounding in  the  streets.  The  conversation  turned  itself  upon  the 
festivity  of  the  present  night,  and  on  the  different  modes  in  which 
it  is  celebrated  in  different  countries. 

"  That  shooting,"  said  Freisleben,  "  is  a  pleasure  that  we  will 
surrender  to  other  people ;  but  the  Vivat !  we  will  help  to  ac- 
complish. The  Chores,  Mr.  Traveller,  which  betake  themselves 
this  night  to  their  kneips,  make,  about  twelve  o'clock,  a  proces- 
sion through  the  city,  and  bring  to  some  of  the  Professors  a 
'  Lebe  hoch !'  But  till  the  hour  arrive,  we  will  endeavour  to 
entertain  ourselves  with  the  recollection  of  a  former  occasion  of 
this  kind.  It  is  so  natural,  at  the  conclusion  of  the  year,  for  us 
to  bring  its  circumstances  once  more  before  us,  and  with  what 
must  ours  knit  themselves? — Certainly  with  the  University-city. 
I  therefore  make  the  proposal,  that  every  one  of  us,  in  rotation, 
relate  something  which  has  a  particular  reference  to  remarkable 
persons  and  events,  occurring  or  existing  in  Heidelberg  in  for- 
mer times,  and  which  were  nev  er  wanting  in  Ruperto-Carolo ; 
and  in  order  to  make  a  worthy  beginning,  our  great  historio- 
grapher, Von  Kronen,  may,  as  he  lately  was  on  the  point  of 
doing,  communicate  some  of  the  most  striking  passages  from  the 
annals  of  the  City  of  the  Muses." 

The  proposal  met  with  general  acceptance.  The  glasses 
were  again  replenished ;  the  cigars  sent  their  curling  fumes  into 

28* 


330  THE  STUDENT'S 

the  air ;  and  Von  Kronen,  throwing  himself  back  in  the  corner 
of  the  sofa,  began — 

Heidelberg  is  one  of  our  most  ancient  university-cities.  Hei- 
delberg, in  the  unfolding  history  of  German  science  and  German 
spirit,  took  a  distinguished  stand,  and  yet  exists  it,  in  the  full- 
grown  image  of  this  scientific  life  of  Germany,  an  important 
and  essential  member.  At  the  mention  of  this  university,  start 
up  in  the  memory  renowned  names,  the  recollection  of  great 
crises  in  the  history  of  literature.  It  is,  to  the  whole  student 
youth  of  Germany,  the  spot  of  promise  and  of  desire.  It  stands 
foremost  amongst  those  German  universities  to  which  even  from 
abroad,  from  beyond  the  Rhine,  the  Alps,  even  the  ocean, 
scholars  assemble  themselves. 

The  most  numerous  and  the  most  living  traditions  of  German 
literature  and  German  spirit  amongst  the  French  and  English, 
date  from  Heidelberg,  and  Heidelberg  is  therefore  pre-eminently 
the  representative  of  our  education,  the  type  of  the  German 
universities,  with  those  nations. 

The  founding  of  the  university  took  place  in  the  year  1386; 
a  period  in  which,  though  literature  flourished  in  Italy,  a  deep 
night  still  brooded  over  Germany.  The  then  Emperor  Charles 
IV.  had  erected  a  school  of  general  study  at  Prague,  on  the 
model  of  the  Paris  university ;  and  the  advantages  of  this  insti- 
tution could  not  escape  the  eyes  of  the  Elector,  a  friend  of  the 
Emperor's,  in  his  frequent  visits  to  Prague — advantages  which 
were  derived  to  the  whole  country  from  this  establishment.  He, 
therefore,  resolved  to  erect  a  university  in  his  city  of  residence, 
Heidelberg.  On  the  other  hand,  the  foundation  of  the  university 
had  a  political  object.  It  was  intended  to  prove  an  instrument 
for  advancing  the  interests  of  Pope  Urban  VI.,  whose  partisan 
Rupert  I.  of  the  Pfalz  was.  In  this  cause  it  stood  forth  in  oppo- 
sition to  the  university  of  Paris,  which  had  declared  for  the 
other  pope,  Clement  VII.  Notwithstanding  this  circumstance, 
it  was  equally  formed  on  the  model  of  that  of  Paris,  and  re- 
ceived part  of  its  first  teachers  thence.  As  there,  the  scholastic 
studies  acquired  an  exclusive  influence.  Theology  was  in  the 
ascendant;  the  Aristotelian  philosophy,  and  the  Canon  Law, 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  331 

followed  in  immediate  connexion;  medicine,  somewhat  later, 
raised  itself  out  of  its  scanty  beginnings.  Dialectical  contentions 
take  up  nearly  the  whole  of  the  early  history  of  the  university. 
Yet  it  is  to  be  remarked,  that  the  returned  spirit  of  living  expe- 
rience announced  itself,  as  it  had  earlier  done  here,  through  the 
predominance  of  Nominalism.  Perhaps  the  study  itself  of  the 
physical  writings  of  Aristotle,  slight  and  confined  as  it  always 
was,  might  lay  the  first  foundation  of  the  empirical  researches 
into  nature ;  which  later,  here,  as  in  Paris,  came  forth  so  con- 
spicuously. On  the  contrary,  the  university  closed  itself  reso- 
lutely against  the  humanity  tendency,  which  penetrated  into 
Germany  out  of  Italy,  and  which  Philip  the  Upright  also  was 
anxious  to  plant  in  Heidelberg ;  but  which  Frederick  II.,  and 
his  successor  Otto  Henry,  were  the  first  to  accomplish,  pre- 
paring thereby  a  way  for  the  Classical  languages  and  litera- 
ture themselves.  Through  Micyle,  Ehem,  and  Melancthon,  the 
university  was  reorganized ;  the  predominance  of  the  theological 
faculty  restrained ;  and  thus,  together  with  the  philosophical  and 
humanity  studies,  a  wider  circle  of  operation  opened  to  the  prac- 
tical sciences.  The  study  of  law  flourished  under  excellent 
teachers;  in  the  faculty  of  medicine  professorships  of  therapeu- 
tics, pathology,  and  physiology,  were  established. 

The  storm  which  now  burst  out  in  the  train  of  the  Reforma- 
tion reduced  the  universities  to  great  straits ;  religion  became 
matter  of  politics,  and  the  personal  connexions  and  opinions  of 
the  princes,  determined  often  in  a  very  powerful  manner  the 
course  of  knowledge.  The  unfortunate  embarrassments  of 
the  Elector  Frederick  V.,  led  to  the  storming  ot  the  castle  of 
Heidelberg  by  the  Bavarians;  to  the  expulsion  of  the  pro- 
fessors and  students ;  to  the  sending  away  of  the  valuable 
library ;  and  finally,  to  the  total  suppression  of  the  university. 
Carl  Frederick  had  it  entirely  to  reinstate  anew.  He  did  it 
with  a  noble  zeal,  in  the  spirit  and  according  to  the  needs  of 
the  time.  The  most  distinguished  teachers,  as  Cocijus,  Spina, 
Frank,  Freinsheime,  and  Textor,  were  called  to  it;  a  pro- 
fessorship for  State  and  Popular  law,  the  first  founded  in 
Germany,  was  established ;  and  entrusted  to  the  celebrated1 


332  THE  STUDENT'S 

originator  of  this  new  doctrine,  Samuel  Puffendorf.  A  freer 
spirit  arose  in  both  speech  and  writing ;  and  Carl  Ludwig  laid 
it  under  no  restraint. 

New  agitations  of  the  time,  again  disturbed  this  happy 
condition  of  the  university ;  the  political  rule  changed  with 
the  personal  affairs  of  the  princes  ;  and  literature  felt  the  in- 
fluence of  this,  in  the  strongest  and  most  immediate  manner. 
The  teaching  of  philosophy  was  at  a  later  period  made  over 
to  the  Lazarists;  a  dark  reaction  commenced  against  the 
liberal  spirit ;  and  at  the  same  time  that  the  peculiar  spe- 
culative element  of  Heidelberg  university  fell  into  the  shade, 
the  empirical  sciences  rose  up  again  into  new  existence  on  all 
sides. 

A  society  had  already,  in  1734,  established  itself  under  the 
auspices  of  Professor  Heuresius,  for  the  cultivation  of  the  his- 
tory of  the  Fatherland,  which  however  fell  again.  In  1769,  a 
philosophical  and  economical  society  was  founded  in  Lautern  ; 
and  in  1774,  a  school  of  state  economy.  Both  of  these  were 
removed  to  Heidelberg  in  1784,  and  richly  furnished  with 
books  and  collections.  From  Heidelberg  went  forth  the  first 
impulse  towards  a  scientific  treatment  of  the  doctrines  of  State 
economy. 

The  House  of  Zahringen  now  stepping  into  possession  of  the 
Pfalz,  thus  presided  over  the  university.  The  second  of  the 
newly  acquired  territories,  the  Breisgau,  erected  in  the  uni- 
versity of  Freiburg  a  rival  to  Heidelberg ;  a  circumstance 
which  was  not  without  its  effect  on  the  latter.  By  the  removal 
of  the  Catholic  seminary  to  Freiburg,  the  scope  and  operation 
of  the  theological  Faculty  in  Heidelberg  were  strikingly 
constringed;  but  only  the  stronger,  and  in  this  respect  in 
opposition  to  the  Freiburg  university,  and  in  more  conspicuous 
superiority,  advanced  the  other  Faculties  of  Heidelberg,  espe- 
cially the  judicial  and  medicinal,  and  of  the  philosophical, 
the  section  of  state  economy ;  which  last,  through  the  new 
organization  of  the  university,  constituted  an  especial  de- 
partment, and  was  placed  in  rank,  at  the  head  of  the  philo- 
sophical. This  scientific  tendency  has  raised  itself  on  the 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  333 

preponderating  necessity  of  the  nation  and  the  times ;  upon  it 
grounded  itself  the  fame  and  consideration  of  Heidelberg  in 
foreign  countries;  and  the  new  government  was  sagacious 
enough  not  to  disturb  this  natural  and  historical  position  of  the 
university  by  ill-timed  interference.  The  demands  of  modern 
education  were  so  far  conceded  to,  that,  by  calling  into  it  men 
of  the  highest  celebrity  in  all  departments,  a  combination  of 
the  various  ruling  tendencies  of  the  spirit  of  the  times,  a  uni- 
versality of  studies,  was  attempted.  The  two  Vosses  were 
won  in  order  to  give  new  splendour  to  the  university,  and 
demonstrate  the  taste  for  classicality  ;  and  a  new  impetus  was 
given  to  the  novel  speculative  tendencies  in  philosophy  and 
theology. 

But  it  soon  became  sufficiently  convincing  that  these  elements 
of  education  did  not  naturally  assimilate  themselves  to  the  scien- 
tific life  of  Heidelberg,  but  were  only  artificially  engrafted ;  that 
Heidelberg  has  not  its  mission  to  represent  in  itself  the  spirit  of 
modern  science  and  art ;  but  the  simple  vocation  of  working  out 
education  and  accomplishment  suited  to  the  necessities  and  in- 
terests of  the  practical  life  of  the  state  and  of  civil  offices,  in 
both  their  wider  and  their  more  circumscribed  spheres.  It  was 
then  suffered  to  retain  the  character  which  it  had  established  for 
itself,  and  those  endeavours  to  force  it  into  directions  which  did 
not  naturally  originate  in  its  own  bosom  and  nature,  were  dis- 
continued. Thus  it  came  to  pass  that  the  philosophy  and  the 
speculative  theology  altogether  dragged ;  that  the  classical  and 
antiquarian  studies  became  one-sided  ;  that  even  in  the  practical 
sciences  certain  methods  became  prevalent ;  that  the  electrical 
shocks  of  the  stream  of  the  new  literary  topics  and  of  scientific 
revolutions  in  vain  thundered  and  lightened  and  raged  round  the 
professors  of  the  old — professors  who,  from  their  isolated  stools, 
smiled  over  that  rushing  and  confused  scene  of  excitement;  and 
that  the  men  of  modern  culture,  the  genial  spirits,  the  specula- 
tive heads,  with  one  voice  called  down  anathemas  on  that  Heidel- 
berg Philisterium.  But  this  anathematized  Heidelberg  Philiste- 
rium  yet  possesses  an  internal  strength  and  freshness,  with  which 
the  hollow  inflation  of  the  soi-disant  intellectual  world  found  it 


334  NEW  YEAR'S  EVE. 

difficult  to  measure  itself;  these  old  gentlemen,  who  seem  so  far 
removed  from  the  spirit  of  the  age,  yet  rest  themselves  in  the 
real  soil  of  the  time,  in  the  spirit  of  the  period,  in  the  progression 
of  political  and  social  life,  far  deeper  than  those  genialists  who 
in  high-sounding  theories  and  systems  imagine  that  they  have 
seized  on  the  world-spirit.  This  scientific  life  which  seems  to 
stagnate,  flows  on  without  intermission  noiselessly,  steadily,  but 
not  by  fits  and  starts. 

HOFFMANN. — The  old  gentlemen  shall  live,  and  to  their  health 
we  will  rub  a  salamander.  Every  one  prepare  a  half-glass,  and 
then  I  will  command. 

All  seize  their  glasses,  which  are  half-filled.  They  rub  with 
them  on  the  table  in  circles  before  them,  all  the  time  saying — 
"  Salamander,  salamander,  salam — ."  Hoffman  commands, 
One,  two,  three !  and  at  the  three  the  glasses  are  emptied ;  One, 
two,  three !  they  are  again  set  down  on  the  table  altogether  with 
a  clap,  where  they  continue  rattling  with  them,  till  the  command 
again  One,  two,  three !  when  they  are  all  lifted  aloft,  and  at  the 
final  command  once  more  set  down  altogether  on  the  table  with 
a  thump. 


CHAPTER  XX. 
NEW  YEAR'S  EVE  CONTINUED. — UNIVERSITY  STORIES. — VON  PLAUEN. 

HOFFMANN. — I  will  now,  for  a  change,  give  some  passages 
from  the  life  and  deeds  of  a  hero,  whom,  were  I  a  Zacharia,  I 
would  celebrate  in  a  no  less  magnificent  epic  than  he  has  done 
the  exploits  of  his  Renommist.  The  Herr  von  Plauen,  to  whom 
I  allude,  studied  for  more  than  ten  years  here,  and  enacted  more 
mad  pranks  than  the  whole  united  university  besides  would  have 
been  able  to  do.  He  was  a  little,  broad-set  fellow,  of  prepos- 
sessing exterior  and  expressive  countenance,  who  stood  particu- 
larly well  with  the  ladies.  His  uncommon  strength ;  his  accom- 
plishment in  all  bodily  exercises ;  his  overflowing  humour  con- 
tinually gushing  forth  in  witty  conceits,  procured  him  a  constant 
good  reception  in  the  student  world,  and  in  the  social  circles  of 
the  city ;  and  he  long  played  in  his  Chore,  as  well  as  in  the 
ball-room,  a  distinguished  part,  till  his  total  sacrifice  of  charac- 
ter, and  his  really  reprehensible  actions,  which  were  all  alike  to 
him  so  long  as  they  carried  him  to  his  object,  completed  his 
ruin.  By  his  strength  he  frequently  put  to  shame  the  travelling 
Hercules  who  exhibit  their  powers  for  money ;  since,  poising 
himself  on  a  perpendicular  pole,  he  would  stretch  himself  out 
horizontally,  so  as  to  form  a  right  angle  with  the  pole,  and  at 
his  pleasure,  could  double  up  strong  silver  coins.  In  the  gym- 
nastic ground,  which  yet  existed,  no  one  could  stand  against 
him ;  and  in  the  fencing-school  he  beat  down  every  one's  guard. 
As  he  once  travelled  in  the  Upper-Rhine  country  without  a 


336  THE  STUDENT'S 

passport,  and  a  gendarme  on  horseback,  would  have  detained 
him,  he  threw  both  the  man  and  his  horse  into  the  ditch  by  the 
roadside,  and  so  left  them.  He  was  especially  expert  in  the  then 
so-much-liked  shooting  of  geese,  and  thus  made  many  a  Philistine 
the  poorer.  Understand  me  right,  Mr.  Traveller;  to  shoot,  in 
studenten  phrase,  means  to  abstract  without  yet  doing  any  thing 
unjust  or  contrary  to  honour;  since,  especially  in  the  olden 
times,  this  was  a  student  ^custom.  Small  things,  as  penknives, 
sticks,  etc.,  if  they  were  not  dedicated,  were  shootable.  One 
might  take  them  from  another,  and  with  the  words — "  This  is 
shot,"  he  took  possession  of  them.  It  may  easily  be  conceived 
that  it  was  only  the  elder  students  who  indulged  themselves  in 
this  practice  against  the  Foxes,  and  no  one  could  secure  him- 
self from  this  Spartan  plundering  but  by  instantly  declaring  a 
thing,  which  another  seemed  to  have  a  design  upon, — unshoot- 
able. 

VON  KRONEN. — This  expression  dates  itself  from  the  prac- 
tices of  the  schools  of  the  fifteenth  century.  As  then  the  teacher, 
with  his  helpers,  was  only  engaged  by  the  inhabitants  of  a  place 
there  for  a  year  or  so ;  so  if  the  parties  disagreed,  the  master, 
with  his  assistants,  to  whom  generally  a  number  of  boys  added 
themselves,  proceeded  from  land  to  land,  and  supported  them- 
selves with  alms,  with  singing  before  the  houses,  and  with  all 
manner  of  petty  plunderings.  The  scholars,  who  stood  ex- 
pressly under  the  protection  of  the  assistants,  must  deliver  to 
them  geese,  ducks,  hens,  and  the  like,  which  they  became  very 
expert  in  carrying  off  from  the  villages,  and  which,  in  their  lan- 
guage, they  termed  shooting. 

HOFFMANN. — I  have  never  before  heard  of  this  custom  of  an- 
tiquity. It  is  a  pity  that  so  beautiful  a  practice  is  become  obso- 
lete, or  I  could,  as  a  musician,  make  most  profitable  use  of  it. 

FREISLEBEN  : — 

Friends  beloved  !  there  were  finer  times  once 
Than  are  these  times — that  must  be  conceded, — 
And  a  nobler  people  lived  ere  we  did. 

HOFFMANN. — But  to   come  back   to   our   story.     Herr   von 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  337 

Plauen  possessed  a  more  admirable  dexterity  in  shooting  than 
any  of  the  schoolboys  just  referred  to  could  possibly  have ;  and 
no  wonder, — as  they  were  only  schoolboys,  and  he  was  a  stu- 
dent. Plenty  of  stories  are  related  of  him ;  how  he  twisted  the 
neck  of  many  a  living  goose,  and  popped  them  under  his  cloak ; 
how  with  ladder  and  hook,  he  brought  many  a  plucked  goose 
down  from  the  lofty  store-room  ;  yes,  and  how  he  came  most 
easily  at  one  ready  stuffed  and  roasted. 

On  Holy  St.  Nicholas's-day,  a  worthy  citizen  of  the  place, 
whose  little  son  also  was  called  Nicholas,  prepared  a  feast  for 
some  guests,  the  chief  ornament  of  which  was  a  goose,  as  fine 
as  ever  gabbled  and  screamed  in  the  Pfalz.  The  goose  was 
carried  up ;  the  guests  had  not,  however,  yet  made  their  appear- 
ance, but  the  little  son  was  impatient,  and  howling  and  crying 
desired  a  slice  from  the  goose.  The  father  strove  in  vain  to 
quiet  him ;  he  howled  and  cried  on.  "  Then,"  said  the  old  man, 
"I  will  give  the  goose  to  the  Pelznickel."  (In  our  country 
there  goes  from  house  to  house,  on  St.  Nicholas's-day,  fellows 
in  disguise,  who  inquire  into  the  past  behaviour  of  the  children, 
and  give  to  the  good  ones  apples,  nuts,  and  little  cakes,  but  warn 
the  bad  and  threaten  them  with  the  rod.  These  disguised  per- 
sonages are  styled  Pelznickel.)  With  the  word  the  old  man  set 
the  dish  with  the  goose  in  it  on  the  outside  of  the  window ! 
This  frightened  the  little  one ;  he  promised  to  be  quiet  if  the 
father  would  take  the  goose  in  again;  whereupon  the  father 
reached  the  dish  in  again,  but  to  his  astounding,  the  goose  was 
gone  !  It  was  already  rapidly  on  its  way  to  the  city  of  Dussel- 
dorf,  (a  Wirthshaus  in  Heidelberg),  where  the  Herr  von  Plauen 
and  his  companions  found  it  smack  right  delectably  with  their 
red  wine. 

A  similar  passage  once  befell  our  hero  in  the  village  Schlang- 
enbach,  where  he  was  for  a  long  time  the  guest  of  the  Amtmann. 
They  both,  he  and  the  Amtmann,  who  had  himself  been  a  lusty 
student,  made  a  call  on  the  Frau  Pfarrerin,  the  parson's  lady. 
They  talked  of  this  and  that ;  of  husbandry,  and  of  poultry  and 
geese.  "  Ay,"  said  the  parson's  lady,  "  I  have  a  goose  hanging 

29 


338  THE  STUDENT'S 

above ;  you  may  match  it  if  you  can.  But  with  what  care  and 
labour  have  I  fed  it  myself;  and  stuffed  it  myself  with  the  best 
Indian  corn  that  was  to  be  got.  But,  gentlemen,  you  shall  judge 
for  yourselves.  I  invite  you  next  Sunday  to  discuss  this  famous 
goose." 

"  And  yet,"  said  Plauen,  "  I  will  wager  that  the  Amtmann 
has  one  that  is  quite  as  good." 

"  Impossible !"  exclaimed  the  Frau  Pfarrerin. 

"  Amtmann,"  rejoined  Plauen,  "  you  won't  admit  that !  I 
challenge  you  to  invite  the  Frau  Pfarrerin  and  her  husband 
to-morrow,  Saturday,  also  to  eat  a  goose,  and  we  will  after- 
wards see  which  goose  is  the  best." 

"  Done  !"  said  the  Amtmann. 

"  We'll  see  !"  said  the  parson's  lady. 

The  residence  of  the  plucked  goose  was  soon  ascertained  by 
the  two.  It  was  up  in  the  chamber  in  the  roof,  where  it  hung, 
and  made  many  ornamental  swings  and  gyrations  in  the  wind 
that  blew  through  the  dormant  windows.  It  was  a  ravishing 
sight,  which  the  world  only  was  allowed  to  enjoy  for  this  one 
day.  It  was  brought  away  in  the  night,  and  the  next  day  at 
noon,  most  deliciously  dressed,  was  served  up  before  the  invited 
guests. 

"  Now,  how  does  the  goose  please  you,  Herr  Pfarrer  ?'  asked 
Plauen. 

"  My  husband  understands  nothing  of  the  matter,"  interposed 
the  Frau  Pfarrerin,  "  but  I  tell  you  the  goose  is  good,  but  mine 
is  much  better.  You  shall  convince  yourselves ;  that  I  promise 
you." 

Alas !  the  Frau  Pfarrerin  was  not  able  to  keep  her  word ;  for 
on  the  morrow  she  became  aware,  to  her  horror,  that  her 
plucked  goose  had  taken  a  greater  flight  than  it  had  ever  done 
while  it  was  yet  unplucked.  She  was  excessively  annoyed; 
and  to  propitiate  her,  the  waggish  companions  sent  her  a  hand- 
some cotton  dress.  On  the  package  was  inscribed — "  A  dressing 
for  the  goose."  The  good  woman  was  completely  conciliated, 
and  highly  delighted ;  but  her  husband  thought  that  the  words 
would  bear  more  than  one  construction. 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  339 

FREISLEBEN  : — 

The  Pfarrer's  wits  were  sharp  and  sound, 

So  let  us  all  drink  to  him  round.  (They  drink.) 

HOFFMAN w  continued. — Another  time,  in  a  cold  winter,  he  put, 
one  night,  the  figure  of  Hercules,  which  adorns  the  Brunnen  in 
the  market-place,  a  shirt  on,  much  to  the  bewonderment  of  the 
market  people  when  they  arrived  in  the  place  the  next  morning. 
Another  time,  as  it  was  the  fair,  the  students,  at  his  suggestion,  got 
all  the  strolling  organists  together  in  the  fair,  who  each  kept  on 
playing  a  different  tune,  which,  with  the  accompaniment  of  the 
barking  of  their  assembled  dogs,  produced  the  most  astounding 
effect. 

I  must  relate  yet  another  of  his  tricks,  which,  however,  he 
played  off  in  another  university  city  directly  before  he  came  to 
Heidelberg.  An  innocent  youth,  who  was  just  come  raw  from 
the  school,  recognised  in  Herr  von  Plauen  a  countryman,  and 
begged  of  him,  as  he  would  go  away  the  next  day,  that  he 
wouM  accompany  him  to  one  of  the  professors,  in  order  to  enter 
himself  as  an  attendant  of  his  lectures,  as  he  really  did  not  know 
how  it  was  proper  to  conduct  himself  on  such  an  occasion. 

"  With  pleasure,"  answered  Von  Plauen,  gave  the  Fox  at 
once  his  arm,  and  conducted  him  to  one  of  the  professors,  who 
was  completely  deaf.  As  they  entered  the  room,  the  rogue  pre- 
sented the  new-comer,  with  the  words, — "  Here,  thou  old  Philis- 
tine !  I  bring  thee  a  young  gentleman  who  will  do  thee  the 
favour  to  listen  to  thy  lectures.  Take  care,  however,  that  thou 
art  not  too  tedious  with  him,  for  he  is  my  friend." 

The  startled  Fox  seemed  to  have  dropped  at  once  out  of  the 
clouds  as  he  heard  his  friend  speak  in  this  manner,  and  his 
astonishment  mounted  to  its  height  as  he  heard  him  again  say, 
as  he  took  his  leave — "  Farewell,  old  Camel !"  which  salutation 
the  professor  answered  with  a  very  gracious  bow. 

"  But  for  God's  sake,  then,"  asked  the  Fox,  "  may  one  then 
speak  in  this  manner  to  a  professor  of  the  university  ?" 

"  So,  and  no  otherwise,"  replied  he,  "  must  you  address  them 
all ;  they  are  accustomed  to  nothing  else ;  and  moreover,  they 


340  THE  STUDENT'S 

soon  lose  all  respect  for  him  who  does  not  cock  his  thumb  a  little 
at  them.  Besides  this,  I  have  been  particularly  civil  to-day,  that 
I  might  not  astonish  thee  too  much,  as  is  the  case  generally  with 
youths  when  they  first  come  from  the  school.  But  thou  wilt 
quickly  acquire  the  proper  tone." 

"  O !  if  it  comes  to  that,"  said  the  Fox,  "  I'll  soon  be  ready 
for  the  gentlemen." 

Von  Plauen  laughed  in  his  fist  as  he  rode  forth  the  next  morn- 
ing through  the  city-gate ;  and  he  soon  learnt  by  letters  that  his 
protege,  in  proceeding  to  enter  himself  with  the  next  professor, 
whom  he  addressed  in  the  same  style,  was  speedily  sent  head 
foremost  down  the  steps,  as  he  had  unluckily  happened  to  come 
across  a  professor  who  not  only  had  an  excellent  pair  of  ears, 
but  a  very  fiery  temper. 

Some  pranks  which  our  hero  permitted  himself  afterwards, 
laid  the  commencement  of  his  fall.  Once  he  feigned  himself 
delirious,  raged  and  cried  out,  for  no  purpose,  but  to  have  the 
pleasure  of  spitting  in  the  face  of  the  physician  who  was  called 
in,  having,  as  it  is  asserted  by  some,  betted  a  considerable  wager 
on  this  point. 

He  spared  the  fair  sex  as  little  in  his  wild  conceits ;  which 
were  not,  however,  always  very  graciously  received.  He  asked 
permission  from  one  lady  in  the  open  street  to  be  allowed  to 
light  his  pipe  at  her  eyes.  Another  time,  a  carriage,  in  which 
were  some  ladies  setting  out  to  the  ball,  being  drawn  up  across 
a  narrow  street,  up  which  he  was  coming,  he  opened  the  door, 
sprung  in,  and  out  at  the  other  door,  followed  by  all  his  com- 
panions in  succession,  about  twenty  in  number.  Once  he  went 
with  his  acquaintance  to  walk  in  the  ^Heidelberg  Castle.  It 
began  to  rain  heavily,  and  the  mistress  of  a  ladies'  school,  with 
her  pupils,  had  taken  refuge  in  the  so-called  Octagonal  House, 
on  the  terrace,. which  was  then  not  completely  closed,  and  had 
only  one  entrance.  This  the  wild  troop  beset,  and  refused  egress 
to  the  young  ladies,  except  on  the  condition  that  each  student 
should  be  favoured  with  a  kiss  from  one  of  the  ladies.  The 
ladies  heard  the  proposal  with  horror,  and  long  held  out  siege 
in  the  little  building ;  but  as  night  was  fast  approaching,  and  not 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  34] 

a  soul  appeared  within  view,  or  hearing,  on  account  of  the  bad 
weather,  they  were  at  length  compelled  by  necessity  to  accept 
the  horrid  condition,  and  were  then  conducted  safely  home  by 
the  wilful  students.  By  this  exploit,  however,  Von  Plauen,  sunk 
dreadfully  in  credit  with  the  world  of  beauty,  as  he  was  well 
known  and  immediately  recognised. 

Finally,  our  hero  was  counselled  or  ordered  to  withdraw 
himself,  for  a  stated  period,  from  the  university  on  account  of 
his  repeated  duels,  and  concluded  with  himself  to  pass  the  half- 
year  of  his  exile  in  the  Hessian  Neckarsteinach.  As  he  was 
intending  to  withdraw  without  paying  his  debts,  he  found  that 
his  testimonial  was  taken  possession  of  by  his  landlady :  for  Mr. 
Traveller,  you  are  perhaps  aware,  that  if  a  creditor  fears  that  a 
student  meditates  quitting  the  university  without  satisfying  his 
just  claims,  he  lays  before  the  Amtmann  of  the  university  the 
amount  of  his  bill,  and  the  exit-testimonial,  without  which  a 
student  cannot  be  admitted  to  another  university,  is  refused  him 
till  he  has  discharged  his  debts.  Plauen  immediately  procured 
all  thp  Hellers  (each  in  value  of  the  twelfth  of  a  penny  English, 
or  two  hundred  and  forty  to  the  gulden,  or  twenty-pence  Eng- 
lish) that  the  place  afforded,  and  sent  them,  to  the  whole 
amount  of  his  debt,  to  the  poor  landlady  in  a  bag,  which,  of  so 
small  a  coin,  were  so  many  as  took  her  several  days  to  count 
them  out. 

On  a  fine  spring  day  he  was,  to  every  one's  astonishment, 
seen  dressed  as  for  a  festival,  leading  in  a  rich  silk  riband,  a 
lamb  gaily  adorned  with  flowers,  along  the  banks  of  the 
Neckar.  To  those  who  wondered  at  his  proceedings,  he  said 
that  this  was  the  custom  of  his  Fatherland  on  that  particular 
day.  So  went  he  on  to  Ziegelhausen,  where  he  spent  the  night, 
and  where  he  was  the  better  entertained  at  the  Wirthshaus, 
because  he  had  attracted  many  people  into  the  house  by  this 
unusual  spectacle.  The  next  morning  he  made  a  present  of  his 
lamb,  which,  however,  was  speedily  reclaimed  by  its  real, 
owner,  from  whom  Plauen  had  "  shot"  it ;  and  then  betook  him- 
self to  Neckarsteinach.  Here  he  played  the  pious  Catholic. 
On  Corpus  Christi  day,  when  the  Catholics  parade  in  solemn 

29* 


342  THE  STUDENT'S 

procession  round  the  town,  singing  and  praying,  and  say  mass 
at  certain  altars  which  are  erected  in  the  open  air,  he  followed 
the  priest,  himself  clothed  for  the  occasion,  and  carried  the  train 
of  his  robe.  Soon  afterwards  he  showed  every  where  a  letter 
sealed  with  black,  which  he  professed  to  contain  the  intelligence 
of  his  mother's  death.  Every  one  took  the  deepest  interest  in 
his  apparently  deepfelt  grief,  and  the  more  so  as  he  caused 
masses  to  be  said  in  all  the  churches  whose  priests  he  had 
before  so  much  flattered.  His  mother,  however,  lived  long 
afterwards,  and  the  whole  was  only  invented  on  purpose  to 
have  the  masses  said.  Equally  false  was  a  later  assertion, 
that  he  had  received  information  that  they  had  appointed  him 
a  canon  in  his  Fatherland ;  and  from  that  time  he  went  about 
the  little  place  in  full  costume,  and  carrying  a  cross. 

When  the  period  of  his  banishment  was  completed,  he  re- 
turned to  the  city  on  a  day  in  the  evening  of  which  there  was 
to  be  a  ball.  An  officer  who  was  a  countryman  of  his,  then 
resided  in  Heidelberg,  and  had  frequently  visited  him  in  Neck- 
arsteinach.  He  hastened  to  his  house,  and  then  found  that  he 
was  absent  on  a  journey.  As  an  old  acquaintance,  he  ordered 
his  rooms  to  be  opened,  managed  easily  to  open  his  commode, 
and  to  draw  out  a  new  uniform  of  the  officer's.  Into  this, 
which  was  indeed  much  too  tight  for  him,  he  forced  himself,  and 
appeared  in  it  that  evening  at  the  ball,  where  he  told  the  people 
one  lie  upon  another,  of  his  having  succeeded  to  this  new  post 
of  honour.  He  looked,  however,  comical  enough  in  the  uni- 
form, which  was  so  narrow  that  when  his  partner  in  the 
dance  let  fall  her  rosette,  he  was  not  able  to  stoop  to  pick  it  up 
for  her. 

Von  Plauen  soon  found  again  a  swarm  of  acquaintance,  and 
again  played  over  his  old  tricks.  One  of  his  acquaintances 
received  from  his  native  town,  which  was  somewhere  not  very 
far  distant,  a  large  and  most  famous  cheese,  and  a  hamper  of 
good  wine.  The  others  soon  got  wind  of  it,  and  wanted  to 
persuade  him  to  make  a  merriment  over  these  things.  But  he 
assured  them  that  he  could  not  touch  a  single  thing  of  them,  as 
he  expected  an  immediate  visit  from  his  family.  His  father, 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  343 

he  said,  had  written  him  that  he  yet  hoped  to  eat  of  the  cheese 
with  him,  and  to  drink  a  glass  of  the  wine  with  him  ;  and  on 
that  account  he  should  leave  every  thing  untouched  till  they 
arrived. 

They  pressed  him  no  farther,  but  one  day  at  noon,  as  the 
lawless  set  knew  that  he  was  fast  at  his  lecture  in  the  college, 
they  rushed  into  his  chamber,  drank  the  wine,  and  filled  the 
bottles  with  water;  and  the  cheese  they  scooped  so  skilfully 
out  from  beneath,  that  nothing  but  the  outward  rind  remained 
standing.  They  set  it  again  in  the  dish  so  that  nothing  was  to 
be  seen.  It  may  be  imagined  what  was  the  poor  fellow's 
dismay  as  he  set  the  cheese  before  his  newly-arrived  relations, 
and  saw  it,  at  the  first  cut,  fall  into  mere  fragments  of  peel; 
and  what  a  face  the  old  man  made  as  he  came  to  taste  of  that 
flat  water  instead  of  his  famous  Rhine-wine. 

Soon  afterwards,  the  student  thus  treated,  missed  a  sum  of 
money,  of  some  three  hundred  gulden,  which  had  been  remitted 
him  in  order  to  defray  the  expenses  contingent  on  the  taking  of 
his  doctoral  examination.  Von  Plauen,  who  had  spent  the 
night  with  him  shortly  before  the  theft  was  discovered,  fell 
under  strong  suspicion,  more  especially,  as,  at  the  same  time,  he 
was  accused  of  forging  bills  of  exchange.  He  was  thrown  into 
the  university  prison,  and  his  examination  begun.  But  he  did 
not  await  his  sentence.  One  evening,  as  he  knew  that  the  fat 
beadle  to  whom  the  care  of  the  prison  was  entrusted,  remained 
alone  in  the  house,  he  tore  the  lock  from  the  door  with  his 
hands  and  hastened  down  into  the  beadle's  room.  The  beadle 
had  the  keys  belonging  to  the  different  rooms  in  the  house,  just 
then  in  his  hand, — "How  came  you  here,  Herr  von  Plauen?" 
demanded  he.  The  prisoner  seized  a  knife  that  lay  on  the 
table,  and  warned  him  that  if  he  did  not  deliver  up  to  him  the 
keys,  he  would  stick  the  knife  into  his  fat  paunch.  The  terri- 
fied man  instantly  surrendered  the  keys;  the  prisoner  shut 
him  in  his  own  room,  secured  him,  and  escaped  from  the 
house.  He  hastened  over  the  bridge.  There  he  threw  himself 
over  the  gate,  which  then  was  closed  every  evening ;  but  he 
stepped  up  to  the  window  of  the  gatekeeper,  knocked,  and 


344  THE  STUDENT'S 

laid  down  a  kreutzer,  saying,  "  I  will  cheat  no  man  of  his 
money." 

He  was  pursued,  but  without  avail ;  and  various  reports  are 
in  circulation  concerning  his  latter  fortunes.  Some  say  that 
he  became  a  fencing-master  in  England,  and  yet  lives  there; 
others,  that  he  continually  gave  himself  more  and  more  to 
drinking,  and  finally  died  in  the  hospital  of  a  great  German 
city,  where,  in  the  last  hour,  he  called  for  a  choppin  of  beer, 
and  drank  it  off. 

FREISLEBEPT. — So  let  us,  in  a  better  liquor,  wish  that  he  had 
left  a  better  memory.  His  tricks,  if  they  were  not  always  the 
best,  have  at  least  served  to  amuse  us ;  and  so  may  it  go  well 
with  him  in  the  other  world,  where,  as  his  deeds  certainly  could 
not  conduct  him  upwards,  let  us  hope,  though  somewhat  against 
hope,  that  a  deep  and  final  repentance  prevented  his  going 
inevitably  downwards. 

They  touch  glasses. 


STORY  OP  THE  BLACK  PETER. 

Mr.  Traveller,  the  turn  now  comes  to  you  to  relate  some- 
thing; but  it  really  is  a  difficult  task  for  you  to  have  to  relate 
something  which  is  connected  with  Heidelberg. 

MB.  TRAVELLER. — Luckily  I  have  recently  heard  the  history 
of  the  life  of  a  student,  who  formerly  studied  here,  and  I  think 
it  is  sufficiently  interesting ; — I  shall,  therefore,  relate  as  much 
of  it  as  I  recollect. 

Some  twenty  or  thirty  years  ago,  a  young  man  came  to 
Heidelburg,  whose  name  was  Schwartzkopf,  a  native  of  Fulda 
in  Hesse.  His  father  had  been  an  officer  in  the  Hessian  service, 
but  he  died  early,  and  his  widow  was  compelled  to  straiten  her- 
self severely,  in  order  to  be  able  to  educate  her  only  son  out  of 
the  proceeds  of  her  small  property,  and  still  smaller  pension. 
Nature  had  made  amends  to  the  son  of  the  widow  for  his 
poverty  by  many  fine  endowments  of  person  and  mind,  and 
proudly  gazed  the  affectionate  mother  on  her  darling  son,  as 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  345 

with  little  solid  cash,  but  on  that  account  with  the  more  well- 
intended  exhortations,  and  with  many  tears,  she  dismissed  him 
on  his  journey  to  the  university.  Many  were  the  anxieties  that 
filled  her  mind  when  she  thought  that  her  son  indeed  possessed 
a  good  heart,  but  was  still  very  giddy  and  of  easily  persuaded 
mind.  He,  with  joyful  spirits,  and  full  of  good  resolves,  pro- 
ceeded to  his  new  place  of  residence.  He  studied  the  greater 
part  of  the  first  year  with  zeal,  and  he  wanted  not  good  friends 
with  whom  he  could  spend  his  hours  of  the  Muses  in  the  most 
agreeable  manner.  His  evil  angel  then  caused  him  to  be  in- 
volved in  a  duel,  and  on  this  occasion  he  made  some  acquaint- 
ances that  were  of  disastrous  influence  to  him.  Through  them 
he  became  acquainted  with  play,  to  which  he  soon  gave  himself 
up  passionately.  It  is  true  that  at  first  he  played  only  in  his 
leisure  hours,  when  his  old  friends  were  not  about  him ;  but  he 
soon  came  to  neglect  these,  and  his  leisure  hours  soon  became 
continually  less  and  less  able  to  satisfy  his  desire  for  play,  and 
then  his  studies  were  sacrificed.  His  friends  grew  tedious  to 
him,  because  they  had  other  interests;  his  books  were  covered 
with  thick  dust;  and  if  he  sometimes  attended  the  lectures,  they 
showed  only  how  far  he  had  fallen  behind  in  the  race  of  know- 
ledge, and  he  hastened  in  vexation  to  the  kneip,  in  order  to 
drown  in  beer  and  play  the  upbraidings  of  his  conscience.  Thus 
he  continued  to  live  on  for  a  long  time;  he  returned  to  his  room 
only  to  pass  the  night,  even  not  that  always.  In  the  morning 
he  fled  from  it  as  early  as  possible,  because  all  there  looked 
desolate.  His  books  were  at  length  sold,  and  by  degrees  he  had 
disposed  of  every  thing  to  the  Jews,  except  the  wretched  clothes 
on  his  back,  in  order  to  feed  his  unhappy  passion.  Many  a  time 
would  he  fall  into  a  horror,  when  he  awoke  out  of  a  dream, 
which  had  carried  him  back  into  his  early  life,  and  saw  around 
him  that  empty  room,  or  when  he  received  a  letter  from  his 
affectionate  mother,  which  was  full  of  tender  warnings, — from 
his  mother,  who  denied  herself  even  the  most  necessary  things, 
that  he  might  not  want  that  money  which  he  thus  consumed  on 
his  ruinous  habits.  But  these  terrible  reflections  drove  him  only 
for  a  brief  space  out  of  his  wild  life,  for  he  was  already  too  deep 


346  THE  STUDENT'S 

sunk  in  it,  and  felt  no  longer  the  strength  necessary  to  work 
himself  out  of  the  gulf. 

It  was  then  that  he  one  day  received  a  letter  addressed  by  a 
strange  hand,  and  sealed  with  black.  His  mother  was  dead, 
and  the  letter  was  from  his  guardian.  Far  as  Schwartzkopf 
was  already  fallen,  yet  this  letter  deeply  shook  him ;  it  embit- 
tered the  melancholy  intelligence  beyond  words,  since  his  guar- 
dian, a  severe  man,  wrote  him,  that  he  had  driven  not  a  few 
nails  into  his  mother's  coffin;  that  he  had  wasted  his  property; 
that  he  should  immediately  return  home,  in  order  to  be  made 
acquainted  with  the  real  state  of  his  affairs,  which  left  him  little 
other  alternative  than  that  of  becoming  a  soldier  in  the  ranks. 
His  state  of  mind  for  the  first  few  days  was  horrible,  and  he 
was  at  the  very  point  of  self-destruction ;  but  this  went  by,  and 
he  concluded,  after  more  quiet  reflection,  that  it  was  the  best  to 
turn  his  footsteps  homewards,  in  order,  if  possible,  to  move  his 
guardian  to  more  moderate  measures,  or,  came  it  to  the  worst, 
to  enlist  into  the  army.  His  debts  were  paid,  and  he  put  up  the 
slender  remains  of  his  possessions  in  his  knapsack,  with  which, 
early  one  morning,  he  passed  through  the  gate  leading  towards 
Frankfort. 

In  the  evening  of  the  second  day  he  had  arrived  in  a  great 
wood,  which  extended  towards  Fulda.  The  forest  seemed  to 
stretch  itself  out  endlessly  before  him.  It  was  already  nearly 
dark ;  and  a  violent  wind  against  which  he  had  to  labour,  bent 
the  tall  and  gloomy  pines,  which  groaned  awfully.  Full  of 
melancholy  he  wandered  forward ;  the  memory  of  the  past 
came  over  him  with  subduing  power;  and  he  almost  wished 
that  one  of  the  mighty  trees  might  be  dashed  down  by  the  tem- 
pest, and  bury  him  in  its  fall.  He  began  to  sing  a  song,  in 
order  to  chase  away  those  painful  thoughts, — when,  as  he 
turned  an  angle  of  the  path,  a  rough  voice  cried  "  Halt !"  and  at 
once  three  men  sprung  out  of  the  bush.  The  coarse  hunting- 
garb,  the  pistols  and  hangers  with  which  they  were  armed,  and 
the  disguised  faces,  left  him  in  no  doubt  that  they  were  some  of 
the  gang  that  kept  that  part  of  the  country  in  disquiet. 

The  student  feared  them  not ;  fear  had  never  been  any  part 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  347 

of  his  nature,  and  least  of  all  now,  when  life  to  him  was  made 
indifferent  by  despair. 

"  Leave  me  alone,"  said  he,  "  I  have  nothing  for  you." 
"  But  with  your  permission,"  said  one  of  the  robbers,  "  we 
will  make  a  rather  nearer  acquaintance  with  your  knapsack." 

"  With  all  my  heart,"  answered  the  student  quietly,  handing 
over  to  them  the  knapsack,  at  the  same  time  that  he  filled  his 
pipe,  and  asked  one  of  them  for  a  light,  as  he  had  himself  lost 
his  fire-apparatus.  He  seated  himself  to  rest  on  a  block  of 
stone  by  the  side  of  the  road,  and  requested  the  robbers  not 
to  detain  him  too  long,  as  he  had  yet  far  to  go  to  his  night's 
quarters.  They  could  not  refrain  from  a  laugh  at  the  sang 
froid  of  the  student. 

"  You  seem  to  me  sad  fellows,"  said  Schwartzkopf,  "  that 
you  don't  understand  your  business  better ;  at  thirty  paces  dis- 
tance you  might  have  seen  very  well,  that  you  would  get  no- 
thing from  me." 

"  Be  silent,  hound  !"  cried  one  of  them,  "  or  in  a  moment  we 
will  cut  thy  throat." 

"  And  a  right  noble  deed  too,"  added  the  student,  "  for  three 
men  to  cut  the  throat  of  one.  If  you  were  not  miserable  Philis- 
tines, I  should  be  obliged  to  call  upon  one  of  you  to  give  satis- 
faction for  that  word,  hound  !" 

"  By  all  the  devils,  he  is  right,  Heiner,"  said  another ;  "  he 
has  a  right  to  it,  since  he  has  shown  himself  so  brave,  and  as 
there  is  nothing  in  the  knapsack,  except  a  few  miserable  articles 
of  covering." 

"  Does  the  fellow  think  I'm  afraid  of  him  ?"  cried  Heiner. 
"  Ay,  to  be  sure  I  do,"  said  the  student,  quietly  smoking  on. 
The  robber  was  raging,  and  demanded  on  the  instant  to 
fight  the  audacious  student ;  but  his  comrades  disapproved  of 
it.     It  was  too  dangerous  an  undertaking  to  decide  this  affair 
on  the  highway.     They  proposed  to  adjourn  to  their  encamp- 
ment ;  and  offered  in  a  manner  friendly  enough  to  the  student, 
if  he  were  not  killed  in  the  combat,  to  give  him  quarters  for 
the  night.    He  was  obliged  to  content  himself  with  the  matter, 
and  so  they  put  themselves  in  motion.     They  went  on  long, 


348  THE  STUDENT'S 

still  deeper  and  deeper  into  the  thick  of  the  wood,  and  on  the 
way  made  inquiries  from  the  student,  whom  they  watched 
pretty  well,  as  to  the  circumstances  of  his  life;  which  he  related 
to  them  truly. 

At  length  they  came  to  an  open  place  in  the  forest.  Here 
the  surrounding  hills  formed  a  sort  of  basin,  which  on  the  one 
side  was  shielded  from  the  wind  by  a  pile  of  rocks,  and  on  the 
other  by  a  screen  of  stupendous  trees.  A  little  spring  gushing 
out  from  the  foot  of  the  rocks,  wound  itself  through  the  carpet 
of  grass,  upon  which  the  robber- troop,  consisting  of  about 
twenty  men  with  their  wives  and  children,  had  built  some  huts. 
The  sentinels  on  the  outposts  had  first  announced  their  ap- 
proach, and  they  were  speedily  surrounded  by  the  troop.  When 
they  learned  the  intention  of  Heiner  and  the  student,  they  gave 
it  their  hearty  applause ;  and  as  soon  as  all  had  refreshed 
themselves  with  food  and  drink,  a  battle-ground  was  selected  ; 
Schwartzkopf  received  a  hanger,  and  the  robbers  formed  a 
circle  round  the  combatants.  The  women  kindled  great  pine- 
torches,  in  order  properly  to  light  up  the  scene. 

The  robber  fiercely  attacked  his  opponent ;  and  the  whole 
scene  had  a  singular  aspect.  The  powerfully  built  figures  of 
the  men,  whose  bold  features  yet  more  strongly  stood  forth  in 
the  light  of  the  torches,  as  they,  smoking  their  short  pipes, 
looked  on  the  strife,  full  of  expectation  of  its  issue ;  and  the 
women  dispersed  amongst  them  in  singular  and  various  attire, 
which  they  had  selected  for  themselves  out  of  the  plundered 
stores.  All  watched  the  fight  in  deep  silence ;  which  was  only 
broken  by  the  clattering  of  the  swords,  the  dashing  of  the 
water,  and  the  rush  of  the  winds  as  they  raged  through  the 
woods.  The  student,  by  far  superior  to  his  antagonist  in  skill 
of  fence,  parried  with  the  utmost  coolness,  quietly  meeting  with 
his  sword  every  blow  of  his  opponent ;  but  as  the  robber  began 
to  press  upon  him  closer  and  closer  in  a  furious  attack,  he 
suddenly  struck  in  before  the  stroke  of  his  adversary,  and  in 
the  same  instant  the  robber  let  his  sword  drop,  and  the  blood 
spouted  hotly  from  the  arm-wound  through  his  sleeve. 

The  men  had  seen  the  contest  with  astonishment ;  the  arm 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  349 

of  the  wounded  robber  was  bound  up,  and  the  rest  of  them 
gathered  together  in  a  group  in  earnest  consultation.  The 
student  continued  standing  alone,  doubtful  whether  he  should 
make  an  attempt  at  escape,  or  should  wait  the  upshot  of  the 
consultation,  which  might  be  fatal  to  him.  He  concluded  to 
wait. 

A  robber  now  stepped  up  to  him,  and  said,  "  Our  captain 
fell  in  a  skirmish  a  few  days  ago.  We  have  all  seen,  with 
admiration,  your  perfect  coolness,  your  courage,  and  your 
swordsmanship;  when  you  arrive  at  home  little  good  awaits 
you ;  remain  with  us,  and  be  our  captain,  and  so  will  you  find 
a  better  life  than  amongst  those  miserable  soldiers."  Schwartz- 
kopf  hesitated  only  a  short  time.  He  weighed  the  attraction 
of  the  proposal  against  the  life  which  he  had  otherwise  before 
him.  He  reflected  how  dangerous  it  would  be  to  refuse ;  and 
if  scruples  arose  in  his  mind,  he  silenced  them  again  by  the 
thought  that  he  could  again  give  up  this  life  when  he  pleased. 
After  a  short  rumination,  he  gave  his  pledge  of  adhesion  and 
fidelity  to  the  robbers.  The  intelligence  spread  itself  with 
rapidity  through  the  whole  robber  troop ;  the  wives  brought 
wine-cups,  and  all  drank  to  the  health  and  prosperity  of  the 
new  captain.  They  caroused  till  deep  in  the  night,  and  drank 
brotherhood  to  Schwartzkopf,  who,  under  the  name  of  Black 
Peter,  was  speedily  known  and  feared  through  the  whole 
country  round. 

About  half  a  year  from  this  event  had  flown  away.  The 
complaints  of  the  country  people  in  the  neighbourbood  of  Fulda, 
of  the  oppressions  of  the  robber  band,  had  ceased.  But  from 
time  to  time  it  undertook  greater  exploits,  with  such  calculation 
and  astonishing  boldness,  as  testified  the  new  spirit  that  was 
come  amongst  them  since  they  were  led  by  the  Black  Peter. 
The  real  name  of  Peter  Schwartzkopf,  from  which  this  was 
derived,  was  not  recognised.  The  former  student,  of  whom 
people  had  so  often  read  in  the  newspapers,  was  believed  to  be 
dead,  or  to  have  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  recruiting  officer, 
and  to  serve  in  foreign  lands.  The  captain,  however,  was 
known  as  the  Black  Peter,  from  two  other  causes.  He  always 

30 


350  THE  STUDENT'S 

wore  a  black  mask;  and  he  had  never  been  seen  otherwise 
than  riding  on  a  black  horse.  The  inquietudes  of  the  war  had 
hitherto  made  impossible  any  earnest  attempt  to  put  down 
those  disturbers  of  the  public  security ;  and  this  was  rendered 
the  more  difficult  as  the  band  never  lingered  long  in  one  and 
the  same  place,  but,  immediately  after  the  perpetration  of  some 
bold  deed,  vanished  from  their  haunt,  and  exchanged  it  for  the 
Bergstrasse,  or  the  country  of  the  Main. 

Already  the  storm  of  war  had  retired  many  weeks  from  the 
neighbourhood  of  Fulda,  and  the  robber  band  appeared  also  to 
have  left  the  country,  perhaps  out  of  fear  of  a  more  vehement 
pursuit.  The  inhabitants  of  the  little  city  of  Schliichten  rejoiced 
themselves  in  the  prospect  of  the  enjoyment  of  a  more  refreshing 
rest  than  they  had  for  a  long  time  been  favoured  with. 

One  afternoon  a  heavily  loaded  travelling-carriage  rolled 
slowly  into  the  city,  and  aroused  universal  attention  as  it  drew 
up  before  the  Gasthaus  Zum-Stern.  A  swarm  of  lounging  Bauers 
collected  about  it,  and  out  of  every  window  peered  curious 
countenances.  But  how  much  greater  was  the  astonishment 
as  the  people  learned  from  the  coachman  and  valet,  who,  both 
of  them  clad  in  military  costume,  looked,  in  their  mustaches, 
most  formidable  fellows,  that  their  master,  a  Graf  of  high  stand- 
ing, had  been  attacked  on  the  way  by  robbers,  and  now  lay 
severely  wounded  in  the  carriage;  and  that  they  only  owed 
their  escape  and  life  to  the  fortunate  interposition  of  a  patrol 
party  belonging  to  the  Graf's  own  regiment. 

At  this  intelligence  the  whole  city  was  thrown  into  an  uproar, 
and  not  the  least  the  landlord  of  the  Star,  who  with  his  loud 
and  eager  orders  for  the  proper  care  of  the  noble  gentleman, 
made  the  heads  of  all  his  people  dizzy.  The  stranger  Graf  was 
finally  lifted  out  of  the  carriage  by  his  servants,  aided  by  some 
of  the  others.  He  was  a  tall,  stately  man,  pale  with  the  loss  of 
blood;  his  eyes  were  closed,  and  many  deep  wounds  in  the 
head  were  only  rudely  and  hastily  bound  up.  While  he  was 
carried  to  his  bed  and  given  into  the  care  of  the  surgeon,  who 
was  called  in,  the  Amtmann  was  hastily  sent  for ;  and,  from  the 
statements  of  the  coachman,  who  caused  at  the  same  time  his 
own  arm-wounds  to  be  bound  up,  dictated  to  his  clerk  a  long 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  35! 

protocol.  The  whole  police  corps,  with  an  addition  of  some 
armed  Bauers,  immediately  set  out  in  pursuit  of  the  robbers, 
without,  however,  being  able  to  discover  the  least  trace  of  them. 

In  the  meantime  the  stranger  lay  in  the  most  frightful  delirium. 
The  servants  forbade  any  one,  besides  the  surgeon,  from  enter- 
ing the  room ;  such,  they  said,  being  the  orders  of  their  lord. 
The  surgeon  wondered  sometimes  at  the  fearful  phantoms  that 
haunted  the  imagination  of  the  strange  nobleman,  which  the 
servants  calmly  remarked  proceeded  entirely  from  the  last 
battle,  and  from  the  attack  of  the  robbers. 

For  some  days  the  Graf  hovered  between  life  and  death,  but 
shortly  a  decided  improvement  manifested  itself  in  him ;  and 
after  many  weeks  he  was  so  far  recovered,  as  to  be  able  to 
receive  the  visits  of  the  first  people  of  the  place,  who  anxiously 
desired  to  make  the  acquaintance  of  so  distinguished  a  person- 
age ;  and  indeed,  shortly  afterwards,  to  return  them.  He  styled 
himself  Graf  Pappenheim ;  gave  out  that  he  was  a  native  of 
the  north  of  Germany,  and  had  quitted  his  regiment  on  account 
of  a  difference  with  his  superior  officer,  and  was  about  to  retire 
to  his  estate.  He  possessed  a  great  partiality  for  Hesse,  as  his 
mother  was  a  native  of  that  state,  whence  he  himself  had  a 
Hessian  accent  in  his  speech,  which  was  strong  enough  to 
strike  the  ear  of  the  people.  In  short,  the  Graf  was  a  most 
genteel  man  in  society,  had  the  most  agreeable  manners,  and 
was  soon  a  favourite  in  all  the  circles  of  the  little  city.  When 
the  Bauers  had  at  first  seen  the  many  heavy  chests  of  the 
stranger,  they  said,  "  he  is  a  rich  man,  the  Graf;"  and  said  they 
again,  with  one  accord,  as  they  saw  him  first  ride  out  on  a 
black  horse,  purchased  of  the  Chief  Forest-master,  "  he  is  a 
very  handsome  man,  the  Graf." 

The  Graf  brought  a  new  life  into  the  little  city ;  he  was  the 
soul  of  all  companies,  and  himself  gave  the  finest  entertainments 
in  the  Star;  in  short,  he  had  always  something  new  with  which 
to  entertain  society.  He  treated  every  one  with  the  most  con- 
descending courtesy,  but  above  all  the  lovely  daughter  of  the 
Chief  Forest-master,  who  was  not  a  little  envied  on  that  account 
by  the  other  ladies.  As  it  now  one  day  became  known  that  the 
Graf  had  proposed  for  the  Forester's  lovely  daughter,  and  con- 


352  THE  STUDENT'S 

templated  buying  an  estate  for  himself  in  the  neighbourhood  for 
his  future  abode,  many  of  the  young  ladies  made  truly  a  sour 
face ;  but  all  said,  "  We  have  long  thought  that,"  and  hastened 
to  present  to  the  young  lady  their  congratulations. 

The  marriage  was  immediately  afterwards  celebrated  at  the 
new  castle  of  the  Graf,  with  the  greatest  eclat.  About  five 
miles  from  the  city  lay,  in  the  midst  of  a  wood — a  former  hunt- 
ing castle  of  the  prince — a  wide-stretching  building.  This  the 
Graf  had  recently  purchased.  The  Chief  Forest-master  thought 
indeed  the  castle  much  too  solitary,  and  of  too  great  an  extent ; 
but  his  son-in-law  quieted  him  on  that  head,  with  the  prospect 
of  the  noble  hunting  which  they  could  here  enjoy  together. 
That  the  carriage  was  always  at  the  command  of  his  wife, 
and  he  hoped  constantly  to  have  company  from  the  city  with 
him.  The  extensive  accommodation  was,  moreover,  very  con- 
venient to  him,  as,  on  account  of  the  not  yet  perfectly  restored 
security  of  the  country,  he  should  send  home  for  the  greater  part 
of  his  servants  to  attend  him  here.  And  it  was  not  long,  in  fact, 
before  the  rooms  of  the  castle  were  filled  with  about  a  score  of 
fresh  servants.  They  were  altogether  strong,  wild-looking  fel- 
lows ;  and  the  Graf  said  that  he  had  selected  these  expressly, 
because  people  yet,  here  and  there,  talked  of  the  robber  band ; 
and  it  was  possible  that  they  might  some  day  attempt  an  attack 
on  his  house  or  property.  It  was  the  more  necessary  for  him 
to  do  this,  as  he  was  himself  a  restless  spirit,  and  could  not  live 
without  now  and  then  making  a  little  expedition.  But  this  he 
could  not  do  unless  he  felt  at  the  same  time  that  he  left  his 
house  in  perfect  security. 

The  people  in  the  city  considered  this  all  very  reasonable, 
and  conceived  a  still  greater  opinion  of  the  affluence  of  the  Graf, 
who  was  able  to  maintain  so  great  an  establishment.  The 
Forest-master's  daughter  lived  with  her  husband  in  the  happiest 
manner ;  and  when  he  sometimes,  accompanied  by  some  of  his 
servants,  made  a  little  excursion  into  the  country  round,  she  in- 
vited always  some  of  her  friends  from  the  city,  and  never  sent 
them  back  without  the  most  beautiful  gifts.  The  Grafin,  indeed, 
wondered  with  herself,  that  her  husband,  who  otherwise  grati- 
fied all  her  desires  the  moment  they  were  uttered,  never  took 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  353 

her  with  him  on  these  little  excursions ;  but  she  loved  him  too  well 
to  chagrin  him  by  pressing  entreaties.  The  winter  was  now 
come,  and  yet  the  excursions  of  the  Graf  did  not  cease.  They 
were  it  is  true,  more  seldom,  but  they  often  stretched  themselves 
into  weeks ;  and  the  young  wife  frequently  felt  herself  exces- 
sively solitary  when  shd,  with  her  maid,  the  only  other  female 
who  was  in  the  castle,  sate  in  the  large  room,  and  the  wind  with- 
out shook  the  naked  branches  of  the  trees  fearfully. 

During  this  period  the  vicinity  was  not  at  all  disturbed  by 
the  robber  band,  notwithstanding  the  repeated  accounts  of  house- 
breaking  and  highway  robberies  in  the  countries  of  the  Main 
and  the  Neckar.  The  Graf  seemed  almost  totally  at  ease  on 
that  subject,  for  he  often  took  with  him  all  the  servants,  with 
the  exception  of  two  or  three,  in  his  journeys.  The  young  wife 
made  many  reflections  on  this  strange  conduct  of  her  husband, 
who  always  so  suddenly  resolved  on  these  marches  ;  yes,  some- 
times even  was  awoke  by  a  servant  in  the  night,  and  at  once 
went  forth  numerously  accompanied.  It  also  struck  her  that 
many*of  the  presents  which  he  brought  her  were  clearly  not 
new ;  and  if  she  asked  him  the  cause  of  it,  he  told  her  that  they 
had  been  sent  for  by  him  from  his  native  seat,  and  that  he  had 
been  in  a  neighbouring  city  to  fetch  them. 

In  that  part  of  the  castle  in  which  the  servants  resided,  was 
a  room  which  was  always  closed  to  the  women,  as  there,  the 
Graf  said,  were  preserved  family  documents  of  the  highest  im- 
portance, to  which  none  but  himself  must  have  access.  Strange 
did  it  seem  when  Lisette,  the  chambermaid,  asserted  to  her 
lady,  that  she  had  often  seen  one  of  the  servants  in  that  room 
with  her  lord ;  and  the  Grafin  was  equally  annoyed  at  the  fami- 
liarity between  master  and  servants,  when  the  Graf,  till  late  in 
the  night,  in  one  of  the  rooms  appertaining  to  the  servants,  was 
accustomed  to  talk  and  drink  with  them.  "  They  are  true 
souls,"  said  he,  "  who  have  been  brought  up  with  me,  and  I 
must  be  good  to  them,  as  I  have  caused  them  to  come  into  a 
country  so  strange  to  them." 

All  this,  and  the  relations  of  Lisette,  who,  amongst  other 
things,  asserted  that  she  had  seen  the  Graf,  on  his  entering  the 

30* 


354  THE  STUDENT'S 

house,  take  off  a  black  mask,  disturbed  the  poor  lady  in  the 
highest  degree,  and  she  resolved  at  last  to  throw  light  on  the 
mystery,  let  it  cost  what  it  would,  but  till  then  to  conceal  her 
anxiety  from  her  relations. 

One  evening,  as  she  heard  the  Graf  and  his  followers  come 
riding  in,  she  hastened  quickly  into  the  neighbourhood  of  the 
suspected  room,  into  which  her  husband  was  accustomed 
always  to  go  first,  and  concealed  herself  in  an  unused  fireplace. 
With  beating  heart  she  saw  the  Graf  enter  with  two  servants. 
With  light  steps  she  approached  the  mysterious  door  and 
listened.  What  she  then  heard  was  sufficient  to  inform  her  of 
her  dreadful  fate.  The  Graf,  and  the  notorious  robber-captain, 
the  Black  Peter,  were  one  and  the  same  person.  Near  to 
fainting,  the  unhappy  wife  glided  away  to  her  own  room. 
Soon  after  the  Graf  appeared,  and  expressed  his  regret  that,  on 
account  of  family  intelligence  which  he  had  received,  he  must 
yet  ride  out  again  this  night,  but  would  be  back  by  break 
of  day. 

Scarcely  had  the  Graf  and  his  troop  ridden  away,  when  the 
poor  wife  called  her  maid,  communicated  to  her  the  dreadful 
truth,  and  both  determined  on  instant  flight.  They  left  the 
lights  burning  in  the  chamber,  and  stole  silently  down  into  a 
room  below.  Happily  the  one  robber  whom  they  had  left 
behind,  was  yet  within  the  mysterious  chamber.  They  escaped 
through  the  window,  and  made  directly  for  the  nearest  way  to 
the  Forest-master's  house.  Like  two  alarmed  roes  they  has- 
tened on  through  the  night,  and  often  shrunk  together  when  the 
moon  lighted  up  a  distant  tree,  so  that  they  fancied  one  of  the 
robbers  stood  behind  it.  Continually  looking  round  to  see  that 
no  one  was  pursuing  them,  they  at  length  came  distantly  into 
view  of  the  Forest-master's  house.  Their  anguish  became 
almost  insupportable  when  so  near  the  goal ;  they  thought  to 
themselves  they  might  yet  be  overtaken.  At  last  they  reached 
the  house,  full  of  joy  that  they  yet  saw  a  light  in  the  room  of 
the  Chief  Forest-master.  He  rose  up  in  amaze,  when  he  heard 
a  knocking  at  so  late  an  hour ;  but  how  much  greater  was  his 
astonishment  as  his  daughter  flew  to  him,  and  sunk  breathless 
in  his  arms. 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  355 

As  soon  as  the  old  man  was  able  from  his  exhausted  daughter 
to  learn  the  cause  of  her  thus  wandering  in  the  night,  his  wrath 
burnt  fiercely  at  the  false  son-in-law.  He  called  up  his  hunts- 
men: the  Bauers  in  the  little  city  were  armed,  and  with  all 
possible  speed  they  set  out  for  the  wood  castle.  But  the  robber 
had  vanished  with  the  mysteries  of  the  closed  chamber.  It  was 
empty.  All  the  other  rooms  were  still  just  in  the  state  that  the 
fugitives  had  left  them,  but  gold  there  was  none  to  find. 

The  next  day,  the  castle  was  surrounded  by  soldiers  that 
were  sent  out  from  Fulda,  but  the  robbers  had  evacuated  the 
country,  and  came  not  again.  After  many  vain  attempts,  it 
occurred  at  last  that  one  of  the  robbers  was  seized  on  the 
Bergstrasse.  This  led  to  further  discoveries ;  and  finally,  they 
had  the  good  fortune  to  take  prisoner  the  captain  himself.  He 
was  confined  over  the  Manheimer  Gate  in  Heidelberg,  and  was 
to  be  delivered  over  to  the  Hessian  authorities,  when  he  escaped  in 
a  most  extraordinary  manner  out  of  his  prison,  but  was  speedily 
recaptured.  After  an  examination,  in  which  he  was  hard 
pressed  without  their  being  able  to  bring  any  confession  from 
him,  he  was  dismissed  at  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening.  At  half 
past  nine  o'clock  the  same  evening,  the  gaoler  announced  to 
the  magistrate  who  had  presided  on  the  inquiry  that  the  Black 
Peter  had  escaped  from  his  confinement.  The  watch  had  shot 
at  him,  but  had  missed  him. 

It  was  found  that,  without  any  negligence  on  the  part  of  his 
keepers,  he  had  got  out  in  a  scarcely  imaginable  manner,  in 
his  shirt  only.  He  had  taken  the  whole  of  the  circular  window 
of  his  prison  with  its  frame  out.  By  means  of  a  sharp  holdfast, 
with  which  the  frame  of  the  window  had  been  secured,  he  had 
broken  th.e  two  new  and  good  locks  of  the  chain  with  which  he 
was  chained  crossways;  taken  off  the  chains;  torn  up  his 
bedclothes,  and  twisted  them  into  a  rope-ladder,  from  ten  to 
twelve  feet  long,  and  had  slipped  through  the  wonderfully 
narrow  opening  of  the  strong  window-shutters,  which,  by  proof 
made  there  and  then,  would  admit  the  passage  of  no  other  head. 
When  he  had  reached  the  bottom  of  his  rope  he  had  still  nine 
or  ten  feet  to  drop  to  the  earth;  and  the  shot,  which  was 
instantly  fired  at  him,  passed  close  to  him. 


356  THE  STUDENT'S 

Immediately  on  his  escape  he  sprung  into  the  neighbouring 
Neckar,  and  concealed  himself  under  the  floor  of  a  swimming- 
school,  which  was  erected  on  a  boat,  where  he  continued  many 
hours  up  to  the  mouth  in  water.  He  saw  the  pursuers  on  both 
banks  of  the  Neckar,  and  in  the  swimming-school  itself.  It 
was  not  till  after  midnight  that  he  attempted  to  wade  through 
the  Neckar,  which,  luckily  for  him,  was  then  very  low  ;  but  he 
had  not  reached  the  other  bank  of  the  river  when  he  became 
aware  of  the  watchers  placed  there  also.  He  continued  yet 
for  a  long  time  sitting  on  a  rock  in  the  middle  of  the  flood. 
Finally,  he  made  another  attempt,  reached  the  bank,  sprang  up 
it,  and  by  a  rapid  and  breathless  flight  succeeded  in  reaching, 
in  spite  of  all  the  straining  efforts  of  his  pursuers,  the  hills  and 
the  woods. 

In  order  to  make  his  appearance  in  the  wood  the  less  striking 
to  people  that  he  might  happen  to  meet,  he  slipped  his  legs 
through  the  sleeves  of  the  shirt,  and  held  the  lower  part  of  the 
shirt  about  his  neck  with  his  hands.  He  thus  ran  on  to  a  great 
distance.  He  met  two  Bauers  in  the  woods,  to  whom  he 
feigned  himself  crazed  and  dumb,  and  begged  of  them  by  signs, 
and  was  so  lucky  as  not  only  not  to  be  seized,  but  to  obtain  an 
alms  from  them,  with  the  pity  of  the  givers.  With  this  alms 
he  purchased  some  bread  at  a  solitary  mill  in  the  mountain. 
The  people  inquired  the  cause  of  his  singular  dress,  or  rather 
want  of  it ;  and  he  invented  a  lie  which  answered  his  purpose. 
He  fled  still  farther ;  till,  at  evening,  he  was  arrested  by  some 
Bauers  of  less  easy  faith,  and  who  had  already  became  apprised 
of  his  flight,  and  the  reward  offered  for  his  recapture.  He 
was  brought  back  to  his  prison,  and  soon  afterwards  delivered 
over  to  the  Hessians,  and  confined  in  a  high  tower.  But  even 
from  this  he  effected  his  escape  in  the  most  ingenious  manner 
possible. 

One  morning,  the  sentinel  who  was  on  duty  at  the  foot  of  the 
tower  looking  up,  observed  a  hole  worked  in  the  wall,  from 
which  a  tolerably  long  rope  hung.  He  immediately  and  with 
all  speed  gave  intelligence  of  the  circumstance  to  the  police 
officers.  All  hastened  up  into  the  tower,  and  saw  with  amaze- 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  357 

ment  a  hole  made  through  the  wall,  of  the  width  of  a  man's 
body  of  ordinary  size.  Into  the  wall,  a  piece  of  iron,  part  of 
the  broken  chain,  was  driven,  and  to  this  the  rope  was  fastened  ; 
the  rope  itself  was  made  from  the  torn  up  cover  and  tick  of  the 
prisoner's  straw  bed. 

They  could  not  sufficiently  wonder  how  a  man  could  pass 
through  such  a  hole;  how  he  could  trust  himself  at  such  a 
terrific  height  to  such  a  brittle  rope ;  and  how  he  could  by  any 
possibility,  when  he  reached  the  end  of  this  rope,  the  length  of 
which  was  insignificant  in  comparison  with  the  height  of  the 
tower,  drop  to  the  ground  without  certain  destruction. 

While  they  were  thus  lost  in  these  wonders,  the  prisoner,  who 
all  the  time  was  in  the  room  concealed  under  the  straw  taken 
out  of  his  bed  and  heaped  up  behind  the  door,  crept  silently 
out,  passed  the  open  standing  door  unobserved,  descended  the 
stairs,  and  completely  effected  his  escape. 

He  lived  afterwards  in  various  places  and  by  various  means  ; 
and  on  the  breaking  out  of  the  war,  enlisted  for  a  soldier.  The 
Battle  of  Waterloo,  which  cost  so  many  honourable  men  their 
lives,  ended  also  his. 

"  And  his  former  wife  ?"  asked  Hoffmann. 

"  She  soon  died  of  grief,  or,  as  they  say  in  England,  of  a 
broken  heart." 


THE  STUDENT  STARK. 


After  a  short  pause,  Freisleben  addressed  himself  to  the 
telling  of  his  story:  and  for  that  purpose  drew  forth  a  letter. 
After  he  had  seen  that  the  company  were  supplied  with  glee- 
wine,  he  said — 

We  have  had  enough  of  evil  and  evil  deeds,  and  it  may, 
therefore,  be  permitted  me  to  relate  something  out  of  the  life  of 
a  good  man ;  namely,  out  of  the  life  of  my  friend  Stark,  whom 
you  have  become  acquainted  with  in  his  passing  through  here 
lately,  face  to  face. 

His  father  was  the  pastor  of  the  village  of  Greenwiesel,  and 
had,  as  is  only  too  much  the  case  with  the  country  clergy,  a 


358  THE  STUDENT'S 

very  scanty  income.  The  boy  received  his  first  instruction  in 
the  Folks'-school  of  the  place,  and  afterwards  from  his  father, 
who,  being  an  industrious  man,  contrived  to  spare  so  much 
time  from  the  duties  of  his  office,  as  was  necessary  to  the  due 
progress  of  his  son.  Private  teachers  he  could  not  afford,  nor 
the  expense  of  his  maintenance  in  a  neighbouring  town,  so  that 
he  might  attend  the  Gymnasium  there.  This  was  only  an  ad- 
vantage to  Stark,  as  he  could  not  easily  have  enjoyed  an 
education  which  was  at  once  so  well  grounded,  and  so  free 
from  all  pedantry,  as  that  which  his  father  gave  him.  An  old 
officer  who  had  long  spent  his  pension  in  the  village,  and  was  a 
friend  of  the  pastor's,  spared  no  pains  to  instruct  him  in  the 
mathematics,  which  he  loved  above  all  things.  But  the  scholar 
listened  with  still  more  delight  to  his  instructor  when  he  talked 
to  him  of  the  armies  in  which  he  had  served,  and  of  the  battles 
in  which  he  had  been  engaged  against  the  French.  The  inter- 
course with  the  old  officer,  and  the  books  which  he  put  into  his 
hands,  contributed  not  a  little  to  inflame  the  boy's  enthusiasm 
for  liberty  and  Fatherland.  With  avidity  he  devoured  the 
German  history  of  Kohlrousch,  and  was  accustomed  then  to 
rush  forth  into  the  wood,  in  order  that  he  might  stretch  himself 
under  the  German  oak,  and  felt  altogether  as  German  should. 
Nowhere  was  he  so  delighted  to  be,  as  abroad  amid  God's  free 
nature ;  and  as  the  other  boys  of  the  village  could  not  under- 
stand his  internal  feelings  and  impulses,  he  was  thus  daily 
accustomed  to  roam  about  alone,  which  occasioned  him  many 
a  reproof  from  his  father.  If  it  was  fine  weather,  he  used  to 
take  out  his  Tacitus  with  him,  his  favourite  author,  or  he 
recited  with  a  loud  voice  a  passage  from  Ossian,  of  which  the 
old  officer  had  given  him  a  German  translation.  Nothing, 
however,  gave  him  greater  pleasure  than  to  battle  with  the 
winds;  and  the  more  it  thundered  and  lightened,  the  more 
drenchingly  poured  down  the  rain,  the  more  exulting  was 
his  feeling  of  the  strength  of  his  youth.  When  wet  through, 
and  looking  wild,  he  returned  home,  his  mother  would  clasp 
her  hands  in  wonder  at  his  foolishness,  as  she  termed  it.  Yet 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  359 

she  loved  him  extremely,  as  he  on  his  part,  above  all  things, 
loved  his  parents  and  his  sister,  and  did  every  thing  to  please 
them  that  he  could  discern  would  be  acceptable  to  them. 

The  first  bitter  tears  that  he  shed,  and  bitter  ones  indeed  they 
were,  was  when  his  old  friend  and  instructor,  the  old  officer, 
died.  But  a  still  greater  misfortune  soon  befell  him  and  his 
family.  At  the  time  that  young  Stark  should  have  entered  one 
of  the  higher  classes  of  the  Gymnasium  of  a  neighbouring 
town,  the  old  pastor  was  seized  with  an  apoplectic  stroke,  as  he 
returned  from  preaching.  His  speedy  death  spared  him  the 
painful  reflection,  that  he  left  a  widow  and  two  uneducated 
children  helpless  in  the  world.  The  family  removed  to  the 
next  town,  and  there  hired  a  poor  dwelling  in  a  small  side 
street.  The  young  Stark,  who  attended  the  Gymnasium,  felt, 
indeed,  that  he  must  consider  himself  as  the  head  of  the  family, 
and  must  provide  for  it.  He  discharged  his  duty  in  the  most 
exemplary  manner.  Besides  that,  he  received  his  school  instruc- 
tion free,  he  also  enjoyed  a  stipend  which  was  awarded  him  in 
consequence  of  his  having  passed  a  brilliant  examination.  It 
was  very  small  indeed,  but  Stark  knew  how  to  circumscribe 
his  wants.  He  laboured  zealously,  in  order  to  advance  as 
rapidly  as  possible,  while  at  the  same  time  he  devoted  every 
leisure  hour  to  instruct  a  considerable  number  of  boys  in  the 
city,  in  their  elementary  learning.  With  the  united  proceeds  of 
this  stipend  and  these  labours  he  maintained  his  family;  and 
thus,  when  he  had  toiled  through  the  day  as  learner  and 
teacher,  the  evening  found  him  by  his  study-lamp,  where  he 
sate  fixed  till  late  in  the  night.  But  he  was  cheerful  and  con- 
tented. His  strongly-grounded  constitution  enabled  him  to  sup- 
port these  exertions,  and  the  glad  consciousness  of  being  able  to 
stand  independent,  and  to  provide  for  the  necessities  of  his 
mother,  and  of  one  dearly  beloved  sister,  made  sweet  to  him 
that  monotonous  life. 

Another  removal  of  the  little  family  was  necessary  when  the 
young  man  went  to  the  High  School.  For  the  rest,  his  family 
continued  to  live  after  that  removal  as  they  had  done  before,  and 
Stark  pursued  his  studies  with  double  diligence,  in  order  yet 


360  THE  STUDENT'S 

better  to  maintain  them.  His  teachers  in  the  university  took  an 
interest  in  the  brave  youth,  and  amongst  the  students  he  found 
congenial  friends,  who,  more  favoured  by  fortune,  took  a  plea- 
sure in  procuring  him  many  enjoyments  of  life,  without  touching 
too  closely  on  the  delicacy  of  his  feelings.  They  visited  him 
gladly  in  his  modest  room,  where,  besides  the  most  necessary 
articles  of  furniture,  there  was  nothing  to  be  found  but  books, 
and  some  maps  which  he  made  use  of  in  his  studies,  and  which 
hung  on  the  whitewashed  walls.  Yet  was  no  one  happier  than 
he  when  he  shared  the  frugal  meal  in  the  evening  with  his 
family,  or  with  a  friend  chatted  over  a  glass  of  beer  and  a  pipe. 
He  went  very  simply,  but  yet  very  neatly  dressed.  His  tall, 
strong  figure;  that  earnest,  somewhat  pale  countenance,  to 
which  the  slightly  aquiline  nose,  the  friendly,  thoughtful  eye, 
and  a  background  of  black  whiskers,  gave  interest  and  effect, 
produced  on  the  beholder  a  highly  favourable  impression.  Every 
one  with  pleasure  heard  him  speak,  for  his  voice  was  strong  and 
well-toned,  his  speech  fluent,  and  when  he  became  zealous,  car- 
ried you  irresistibly  along  with  it.  But  when  he  sung,  he  affected 
every  one.  His  bass  voice  was,  however,  too  powerful  for  a 
small  room.  It  made  every  window  vibrate,  and  was,  indeed, 
a  voice  made  to  sing  the  songs  of  German  freedom  under  the 
German  oak. 

Cruelly  did  fate  startle  him  out  of  this  monotonous  yet  quiet 
and  happy  life.  A  nervous  fever  which  then  raged,  snatched 
away  his  mother;  and  his  only  sister,  who  had  been  her  .true 
nurse  on  her  sick  bed,  soon  followed  her.  Stark  was  strongly 
bowed  down  by  these  severe  losses.  So  much  the  more  did  he 
attach  himself  to  a  maiden,  whom  he  had  now  known  for  some 
years,  and  to  whom  he  had  now  been  for  half  a  year  affianced. 

The  father  of  Emily,  his  promised  bride,  lived  near  the  city. 
Emily  had  a  very  attractive  person,  was  always  merry  and 
good-humoured,  and  possessed  many  good  qualities ;  but  was  in 
the  highest  degree  giddy  and  fickle.  My  friend  would  never 
admit  the  last  characteristic.  He  was  blind  enough  only  to  see 
in  the  maiden,  noble  and  beautiful  qualities,  which  he  worshipped. 
But  he  came  to  be  bitterly  convinced  to  the  contrary.  A  wealthy 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  361 

merchant's  son,  who  just  then  was  commencing  business  for  him- 
self, announced  himself  as  a  lover  of  Emily  to  her  father.  The 
father,  although  pleased  with  the  proposal,  yet  gave  his  daughter 
free  choice,  and  she  was  heartless  enough  to  prefer  the  charac- 
terless, pretty,  and  glib-tongued  merchant,  to  the  poor  Stark, 
who,  since  his  recent  trials,  truly  had  become  more  grave,  and 
might  possibly  have  wearied  her  with  many  melancholy  retro- 
spections of  his  lost  mother  and  sister.  Emily  shrunk  from 
writing  herself  to  my  friend,  but  informed  him,  apparently  in  an 
unfeeling  manner,  through  a  third  person,  that  the  connexion 
must  be  broken  off;  and  assigned  as  reasons,  besides  some  other 
unimportant  things,  that  her  father  was  favourable  to  the  pre- 
tensions of  the  other  lover,  and  had  forbid  her  to  hope  for  his 
consent  to  a  union  with  Stark. 

Her  father,  who  through  the  whole  affair  conducted  himself 
as  an  honourable  man,  answered  a  letter  which  my  friend 
addressed  to  him.  This  answer  kept  strictly  to  the  truth ;  but 
at  the  same  time  expressed  a  wish  that  it  might  be  the  last; 
moreover,  requesting  the  return  of  the  letters  of  Emily.  1  will 
here  communicate  to  you  the  letter  which  my  friend  wrote  to 
the  false  one.  He  permitted  me,  as  I  was  long  the  confidant  of 
his  attachment,  and  frequently  the  bearer  of  his  letters,  to  take 
a  copy  of  this,  and  also  to  show  it  to  any  good  and  tried  friend. 
You  may  in  it  see  the  real  nature  of  his  character. 

"  EMILY  ! — Thy  father  has  requested  me  to  renounce  our  ver- 
lobment ;  to  break  off  the  correspondence.  I  had  already  written 
to  give  him  this  assurance,  but  he  had  not  the  goodness  to 
receive  the  letter.  Consequently  I  have  not  given  it  him,  and 
his  will  is  for  me  no  unconditional  law. 

"  But  thou  appearest  to  be  of  the  same  mind,  and  thy  wishes 
shall  be  sacred  to  me  till  my  last  breath.  Fear  not  that  I  will 
embarrass  thee  with  further  importunities  :  only  I  cannot  deny 
myself  the  melancholy  pleasure,  once  more,  in  this  last  letter, 
to  speak  to  thee  from  my  heart.  I  will  justify  myself  to  thee, 
justify  thou  also  thyself  to  thyself.  My  heart  shall  and  must  be 
silent :  I  have  cause  to  fear  that  its  language  will  no  longer  be 
understood ;  and  I  will  not  desecrate  its  sensibilities.  It  has 

31 


362  THE  STUDENT'S 

for  some  time  been  my  employment  to  read  over  again  all  thy 
letters  with  a  bitter  feeling.  It  is  as  if  the  lovely  deception  yet 
still  played  round  my  heart ;  as  if  it  could  not  awake  out  of  the 
sweet  dream.  I  know  many  kinds  of  doubts,  but  none  gives 
such  a  scorpion  sting  as  the  doubt  with  which  thou  hast  inspired 
me.  I  have  been  happy, — happy  in  my  vain  belief!  and  I  thank 
thee  for  it.  Thou  mayst  be  proud;  —  no  other  woman  has 
made  me  so  happy  as  thou.  Thou  mayst  be  very  proud ; — 
none  can  henceforward  make  me  happy.  Thou  bringest  me 
back  to  my  old  philosophy  respecting  the  fair  sex,  and  indeed  at 
the  right  time. 

"  Emily,  thou  hast  not  dealt  nobly,  not  honestly,  with  me,  not 
wisely  with  thyself.  Why  hast  thou  not  told  me  the  truth? 
Thinkest  thou  that  I  shun  the  truth,  even  when  it  strikes  me  to 
the  earth  ?  I  observed  thy  change  immediately  with  the  holiday. 
I  ran  to  and  fro,  full  of  anguish,  like  one  possessed.  No  greet- 
ing came  from  thee — no  affectionate  inquiry — no  question  after 
a  letter,  which  I  had,  in  fact,  written  seven  times  and  tore  again 
to  pieces.  My  spirit  was  on  the  rack.  Then  informed  met 
Neuburg,  that  the  connexion  must  cease ;  that  thou  wished  it 
— thou !  who  only  a  fortnight  before,  sent  me  the  most  sacred 
protestations !  Thy  father  had  taken  away  all  hope  from  thee ; 
had  menaced  thee  with  his  curse ! 

"  Of  all  this  nothing  was  true,  as  I  learned  from  thy  father's 
letter.  What  course,  thinkest  thou,  then  was  left  me  to  pursue 
in  accordance  with  my  character,  but  to  write  to  thy  father 
directly,  as  from  thy  messenger  I  must  understand  that  he  knew 
all.  Hadst  thou  but  said  the  truth  to  me,  I  should,  after  a  short 
struggle,  have  returned  every  thing  to  thee. 

"  Thou  complainest  of  my  pride,  and  takest  great  pains  to 
humble  me.  Perhaps  thou  mayst  succeed ;  perhaps  not.  Thy 
father  will  receive  no  further  letter  from  me ;  thy  mother,  none; 
thou  thyself  perhaps,  none.  That  cannot  humiliate  me.  I  find 
my  conduct  tolerably  consistent, — as  consistent  as  a  man  in  my 
stale  of  mind  can  be. 

"  What  shall  I  now  do  ?  It  was  thy  desire, — thine,  and  thine 
only  to  break  off.  Thou  wouldst  have  spared  me,  and  thyself, 
and  thy  parents,  many  painful  feelings,  if  thou  hadst  acted  with 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE. 

somewhat  more  consideration.  It  seems  as  if  thou  hadst  made 
it  thy  pleasure  to  wind  up  my  sensibilities  to  such  a  height,  in 
order  then  to  make  me  feel  my  nothingness.  Thou  hast  suc- 
ceeded. The  maiden  who,  but  shortly  before,  hung  on  my  neck, 
and  prayed  assurances  of  my  truth,  has  now  not  once  the  cou- 
rage to  say  that  she  loves  me.  I  am  too  serious  for  gallantry ; 
and  thou  hast  wofully  erred,  if  thou  hast  classed  me  amongst 
such  men.  It  seems  we  have  neither  of  us  known  each  other, 
and  need  therefore  make  no  complaints  of  each  other.  That  I 
have  disturbed  thy  peace,  forgive  me.  That  thou  hast  created 
in  me  so  many  beautiful  hopes,  only  again  to  destroy  them ; 
that  through  thee  my  joys  are  dashed  to  the  ground,  that  will  I 
forgive  thee ;  lament  my  simplicity,  and  again  class  thee  amongst 
the  ordinary  crowd  of  maidens. 

"  Could  I  but  do  that,  Emily,  I  should  yet  be  happy  enough. 
My  seriousness  has  not  pleased  thee;  and,  in  order  to  cure  it, 
thou  hast  poured  bitterness  into  it.  I  complain  not  of  thy 
parents ;  they  act  according  to  their  notions  of  duty ;  but  how 
thou*actest  according  to  thy  conception  of  duty,  I  cannot  per- 
ceive. Thou  hast  neither  acted  towards  thy  father  nor  towards 
me  as  thou  shouldst.  The  reasons  which  thy  father  gives  are 
valid  enough,  as  thou  givest  weight  to  them ;  but  one  thing 
more  than  all  has  struck  me — it  is  called  the  fickleness  of 
women. 

"  Thy  father  does  thee  justice.  Emily,  thou  shouldst  have 
been  honest  with  me.  I  am  not  the  man  that  will  abuse  the 
tender  heart  of  a  maiden.  I  challenge  thee  to  speak  the  truth. 
Have  I  not  been  open-hearted  with  thee?  Have  I  stolen  thy 
affections  ?  My  whole  soul  hangs  yet  on  thee,  and  never  will 
it  be  able  to  loose  itself  from  thee.  If  thou  wert  unworthy  of 
me,  would  I  weep  and  lament  over  thee?  Tell  me  then  can- 
didly thy  desires,  and  trust  me  that  I  have  generosity  enough  to 
satisfy  them  all,  even  if  it  cost  me  my  life.  Thou  canst  charge 
nothing  upon  my  honour.  Thou  would  long  ago  have  had  thy 
letters,  if  thy  father  had  not  demanded  them.  He  shall  not  re- 
ceive them,  but  he  shall  read  them  if  he  desires  it,  for  his  own 
satisfaction  and  thy  justification.  Hast  thou  written  any  thing 


3G4  THE  STUDENT'S 

that  thou  art  ashamed  to  acknowledge  ?  Hast  thou  cause  for 
shame?  Then  are  we  both  to  be  pitied;  thy  father  and  I, 
and  thou  most  of  all.  Then  shall  they,  to  extinguish  all  mistrust, 
be  destroyed  in  thy  presence.  If  I  am  reluctant  to  come  into 
thy  father's  presence,  yet  I  will  not  be  ashamed  before  him.  I 
am  wont  to  compel  respect,  if  indeed  I  can  acquire  no  attach- 
ment. I  can  well  imagine  how  many  disadvantageous  things 
people  will  tell  thee  at  my  expense.  If  thou  canst  believe  them 
without  examination,  then,  indeed,  have  I  expended  on  thee 
every  sentiment  of  my  heart  in  vain.  I  pity  thee  in  all  my 
misery  far  more  than  myself,  since  I  shall  probably  so  long  as 
I  live  continue  a  living  reproof  to  thee.  My  conduct  will  be  thy 
punishment.  I  assure  thee,  love,  that  I  shall  never  lose  thee  out 
of  my  soul.  I  have  with  no  other  maiden  stood  in  a  nearer 
relationship.  Thou  art  the  only  one  that  has  firmly  fixed  her- 
self in  my  heart.  Go  whither  thou  wilt,  I  shall  bear  thee  with 
me  to  the  grave.  Thirty  years  hence  thou  wilt  most  probably 
hear  from  me  exactly  the  same  tone,  if  thou  art  by  any  circum- 
stance reminded  of  me. 

"  Emily,  thou  shouldst  have  dealt  more  honestly  with  me. 
By  God !  I  would  have  sacrificed  every  thing  for  thee.  Wilt 
thou  be  happy  when  at  thy  wedding  1  sing  a  song  of  sorrow, 
that  my  friends  may  weep  with  me  1 

"  Emily,  I  pray  thee,  for  God's  sake,  by  the  happiness  that 
thou  yet  hopest,  be  worthy  of  thyself:  I  cannot  believe  any 
thing  bad  of  thy  heart.  Be  the  friend  of  thy  father,  if  thou 
canst  no  longer  be  my  beloved.  If  my  kiss  has  not  ennobled 
thee,  then  am  I  an  outcast,  or  thou  a  creature  without  mind. 
Do  nothing — nothing  secret.  What  I  did  was  done  on  thy 
account;  otherwise  1  walk  ever  in  the  light.  For  my  sake, 
also,  show  this  letter  to  thy  parents ;  I  will  not,  when  occasion 
requires  it,  conceal  from  them  that  I  have  written  this  letter. 

"  Allow  me  once  more  to  deceive  myself  with  the  sweet  delu- 
sion of  the  harmony  of  our  souls.  Thou  hast  destroyed  a  beau- 
tiful work,  love,  which  thou  shouldst  not  have  done,  or  shouldst 
not  have  helped  to  build  it  up.  Thou  askest  what  I  think,  and 
not  what  I  feel  ?  I  am  infinitely  sorrowful ;  and  of  what  kind 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  355 

my  affections  are  thou  mayst  read  hereafter  in  my  countenance. 
I  may,  perhaps,  never  again  be  so  happy  as  to  speak  another 
syllable  with  thee,  but  my  heart  will  accompany  thee,  since  I 
am  unchangeable  ! 


It  is  an  old,  old  story, 

Yet  bides  for  ever  new  ; 
And  he  to  whom  it  chances, 

It  breaks  hie  heart  in  two.     » 

Heyne. 

It  came  not  truly  so  far  with  my  friend  ;  but  happiness  of  his 
life  was  for  a  long  period  destroyed  :  the  manly  and  high-toned 
character  of  his  mind,  however,  saved  him  from  sinking  perma- 
nently under  the  weight  which  would  have  prostrated  many  a 
one  of  equally  sensitive  and  strongly-devoted  temperament. 
But,  as  an  English  poet  has  said,  he  resolved  not  to  sacrifice 

His  name  of  manhood  to  a  myrtle  shade. 

The  fervour  of  his  passion  for  political  liberty,  his  admiration 
of  heroic  actions,  and  his  pride  in  his  native  country,  were  very 
near,  in  the  excited  state  of  his  mind,  leading  him  to  involve 
himself  in  the  grand  but  ill-digested  plans  of  the  Burschenschaft 
for  the  consolidation  of  Germany  into  one  magnificent  empire  ; 
and  probably  the  blowing  up  of  those  plans  by  the  government 
measures  which  followed  on  the  wild  deeds  of  Sand  and  others, 
just  at  that  crisis,  saved  him  from  the  fate  which  most  probably 
would  have  awaited  one  so  ardent  and  qualified  to  take  a  promi- 
nent part  —  flight,  or  exile,  from  his  native  country.  Therefore, 
turning  his  eyes  away  from  this  hopeless  track,  he  studied  with 
renewed  severity,  passed  a  splendid  examination,  and  soon  after 
wrote  a  work  on  the  German  political  constitution,  which  at 
once  attracted  attention,  and  excited  the  admiration  of  all  the 
lawyers  in  Germany.  It  was  soon  translated  into  most  of  the 
languages  of  Europe,  and  brought  him  a  call  from  the  principal 
university  of  one  of  the  first  states  of  Germany,  where  he  now 

31* 


366  THE  STUDENT'S 

occupies  the  chair  of  jurisprudence  with  the  most  splendid  repu- 
tation. He  is  no  less  distinguished  by  the  clearness  and  grasp 
of  his  reasoning  powers,  than  by  the  eloquence  of  his  style,  by 
which  he  contrives  to  diffuse  a  charm  and  a  life  into  the  driest 
topics ;  and  he  is  equally  so  for  the  liberality  of  his  principles, 
and  the  ardent  devotion  of  his  mind  to  the  liberties  of  mankind. 
He  is  beloved  by  the  students  who  attend  his  lectures,  for  the 
affability  of  his  manners,  and  by  his  cordial  readiness  on  all 
occasions  to  give  them  his  advice  in  any  of  their  troubles  or 
perplexities.  Having  himself  fought  his  way  through  a  narrow 
and  a  rugged  path,  he  knows  how  to  sympathize  with  others  in 
the  same  circumstances.  His  triumphs  over  his  own  impedi- 
ments have  not  inspired  him  with  arrogance ;  nor  the  sorrows 
and  disappointments  of  his  dearest  hopes  seared  his  sensibilities, 
but  on  the  contrary,  softened  and  mellowed  his  heart.  In  public, 
he  wears  in  his  pale  and  grave  countenance  traces,  not  only  of 
his  native  tone  of  mind,  but  of  the  shattering  baptism  of  spirit 
that  he  has  passed  through ;  but  in  the  social  circle,  though 
often  on  his  first  entrance  silent  and  reserved,  the  warmth  of  his 
imagination  and  heart  are  sure  to  triumph  over  the  sadness  of 
habitual  reflection ;  and  he  charms  every  one  with  the  poetry 
and  the  animated  references  to  the  great  deeds  and  great  men 
of  his  Fatherland,  that  show  you  that  he  is  still  at  heart  the  same 
as  when  he  listened  in  breathless  attention  to  the  stories  of  the 
old  officer,  or  sung  out  Ossian  on  the  forest  hills. 

Of  Emily,  we  have  little  to  say.  Hidden,  herself,  in  the  re- 
tirement of  private  life,  she  would  have  seen  with  an  inextin- 
guishable regret  the  splendid  career  and  wide  fame  of  the  man 
whom  she  had  abandoned,  had  she  possessed  a  mind  worthy  of 
becoming  the  companion  of  such  a  man  and  of  such  a  destiny ; 
but  the  great  error  of  Stark's  life  was  that  of  investing  a  lovely 
but  not  high-minded  woman,  with  the  poetry  and  the  magna- 
nimity of  his  own  spirit.  But  he  himself  is  a  striking  example 
of  the  virtues,  the  talents,  and  the  indefatigable  labours  by  which 
many  a  German  Professor  fights  his  way  out  of  narrow  cir- 
cumstances, and  through  the  shades  of  native  obscurity,  into 
the  broad  light  of  fame  and  public  usefulness.  Such  instances 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  367 

are  not  rare,  and  they but,  hear  I  right  ?  it  even  now  strikes 

twelve ! 

In  confirmation  of  this  was  heard  on  all  sides  the  reports  of 
fire-arms. 

"Prost  Neu-Jahr!  gentlemen,"  cried  Freisleben.  "Prost 
Neu-Jahr !"  resounded  they  in  reply.  Freisleben  declared  that 
his  story  was  at  an  end ;  they  drank  off  their  glasses  anstossing 
for  the  first  time  in  the  new  year,  and  hurried  into  the  street. 


CONCLUSION  OF  NEW  YEAR  S   EVE THE  TORCH  TRAIN — THE  EXPLOIT 

OF  THE  RED  FISHERMAN. 

Following  the  distant  sound  of  the  fire-arms,  they  soon  came 
to  the  troop  of  students,  which  was  marching  round  to  bring  to 
the  Prorector,  and  to  some  of  the  most  popular  professors,  a 
"  Vivat !"  Music  went  before,  accompanied  with  torches ;  and 
a  noisy  swarm  of  students  followed  it, — some  in  cloaks  and 
great  coats ;  some  in  dressing-gowns,  and  with  their  long  pipes 
in  their  mouths.  You  could  easily  see  that  they  had  all  of  them 
suddenly  started  away  out  of  their  kneips,  where  they  had  cele- 
brated the  termination  of  the  old  year.  They  now  arrived  at 
the  dwelling  of  a  professor.  The  musicians  placed  themselves 
in  the  centre  of  the  street,  surrounded  by  the  torches ;  the  stu- 
dents closed  in  around  them  in  a  dense  circle,  and  the  music 
played  a  tune.  A  student  then  stepped  forward,  and  gave  a 
loud  "  hoch !"  to  the  Professor.  All  joined  in  it  three  times, 
while  the  music  blew  a  flourish,  and  the^  pistols  thundered  off  all 
round.  As  the  third  "  hoch !"  ceased,  a  window  opened  above, 
a  dark  figure  showed  itself,  and  immediately  below  "  Silentium" 
was  commanded.  All  were  still,  and  the  Professor  spoke  as 
follows : — 

"Gentlemen!  Ever  since  I  have  resided  in  Heidelberg  as 
teacher,  have  you  annually  paid  me  this  testimony  of  your 
respect  and  esteem ;  but  were  I  to  live  to  be  as  old  as  Methuse- 


368  THE  STUDENT'S 

lah,  and  was  this  scene  every  year  renewed,  it  would  give  me 
a  fresh  satisfaction. 

"  Gentlemen  !  Let  the  world  judge  of  our  worth  as  men ;  let 
the  republic  of  the  learned,  which  you  are  growing  up  to  become 
a  part  of,  decide  on  our  services  as  learned  men,  on  our  ability 
as  teachers, — the  means  of  alone  coming  to  a  just  conclusion  on 
those  points  will  still  lie  constantly  in  the  hands  of  the  student 
youth.  May  they  always  use  them  with  wise  consideration,  and 
free  from  all  party  spirit.  So  long  as  we  are  able  to  labour 
with  the  vigour  of  men  for  the  good  of  the  High-School,  will 
our  honest  endeavours  to  fill  our  posts  worthily  as  teachers,  not 
be  in  vain ;  and  we  rejoice  in  this  glad  consciousness  that  we 
find  in  the  acknowledgments  of  the  student  youth,  only  an  echo 
of  that  which  our  inner  self  declares.  But  when  the  zenith  of 
our  career  is  past,  so  comes  by  degrees  the  weakness,  and  with 
it  the  doubtfulness  of  age ;  and  then  does  it  delight  us  to  find  in 
the  acknowledgments  of  others,  the  conviction  that,  although  our 
hair  has  become  whitened  with  the  snow  of  age,  yet  our  labour 
still  preserves  its  freshness  and  its  green.  And  the  Ruperto- 
Carola  is  also  an  ancient  and  venerable  stem,  which  ages  in 
their  flight  have  already  visited  with  their  storms ;  but,  if  these 
storms  have  often  and  fiercely  shook  it,  they  have  never  been 
able  to  uproot  it.  '  So  long  as  teachers  dwell  under  the  shadow 
of  this  tree,  who,  anxiously  seeking  its  prosperity,  cherish  and 
nourish  the  old  trunk ;  so  long  as  scholars  make  to  it  their  pil- 
grimage, who  seek  knowledge  earnestly,  so  long  shall  Ruperto- 
Carola  flourish  and  bloom. 

[Here  the  Professor  went  over  the  past  year  in  review,  and 
stated  what  it  had  brought  both  of  good  and  evil  to  the  uni- 
versity, and  then  continued.] 

"  May  Ruperto-Carola  ever  possess  scholars,  of  whose  ap- 
proval an  honest  man  will  be  proud !  May  yet  many  an  age 
on  the  festive  day  resound  the  cry  of — '  Vivat  Ruperto-Carola!' " 

The  sons  of  the  Muses  here  joined  in  with  their  thundering 
"  vivats !"  The  music  made  a  flourish — the  pistols  resounded. 

"  Once  more,"  cried  the  Professor,  in  conclusion,  "  my  hearty 
thanks  for  this  proof  of  your  love.  May  your  Fatherland  re- 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  359 

ceive  you  in  a  while  with  pride  from  our  arms,  where  it  yet 
only  reluctantly  leaves  you  for  your  good.  May  you  live  long 
and  happy !" 

The  professor  withdrew  from  the  window ;  the  music  played 
yet  another  tune,  and  the  troop  then  marched  onwards.  The 
four  friends  having  separated  themselves  from  the  throng,  in 
order  to  return  home,  heard  yet  for  a  long  time,  the  distant  up- 
roar of  the  merry  students,  and  the  sounding  of  the  fire-arms. 

We  must  here  further  observe,  that  not  only  such  night-music 
is  brought ;  but  also  on  some  occasions,  in  order  to  do  the  more 
honour  to  the  professors,  the  so-called  solemn  night-music, 
attended  by  a  greater  procession  of  the  students,  who  carry 
torches,  and  have  their  appointed  marshals  and  officers,  to 
maintain  order  in  the  procession.  The  description  of  a  torch- 
train  will  yet  follow.  Before  this  arrives  at  the  house  of  the 
Professor,  two  or  three  deputies  proceed  thither  in  a  carriage. 
These,  in  full  gala  costume,  wait  upon  him  for  whom  the  com- 
pliment is  intended,  and  make  him  a  short  address.  The  Pro- 
fessor returns  them  his  thanks,  and  as  he  has  always  become 
aware  of  the  intention  of  the  students,  he  has  his  bottle  of  cham- 
pagne ready,  which  he  sets  before  the  deputies,  and  anstosses 
with  them.  They  retire  as  the  torch-train  approaches  the  house, 
and  when  the  customary  hochs !  have  been  given :  first,  by  the 
students  to  the  honour  of  the  Professor ;  and  then  by  the  Profes- 
sor in  his  speech  to  the  prosperity  of  the  university,  the  officers 
who  have  stepped  forward  for  the  purpose  clash  their  swords 
wildly  together.  Before  retiring  they  generally  sing — "  Stosst- 
an !  Heidelberg  live  thou  !"  and  the  torch-train  marches  away. 

In  some  places,  as  in  Munich,  it  is  the  custom  that  the  Pro- 
rector  when  the  New-Year's-night  "  Hoch !"  is  brought  him, 
invites  the  students  in,  and  treats  them  with  punch.  It  may 
readily  be  imagined  how  much  of  this  liquor  is  consumed  on 
such  an  occasion,  and  into  what  a  predicament  a  Professor 
once  fell  in  Munich,  who  had  prepared  his  punch,  but  waited 
for  the  students  in  vain,  who  out  of  dislike  omitted  to  pay  him 
this  visit  of  honour. 

But  it  was  destined  that  the  Englishman  and  his  three  friends, 


370  THE  STUDENT'S 

to  whom  we  must  now  return  from  this  digression,  should  not 
on  this  night  yet  retire  to  rest.  They  had  just  arrived  in  the 
Karl-platz,  as  a  man  galloped  past,  crying  out  with  all  his 
might, — "  The  ice  goes !  The  ice  goes !" 

This  messenger  was  from  Neckargemiind,  sent  to  announce 
to  the  inhabitants  of  Heidelberg  this  event,  which  the  people 
living  on  the  banks  of  the  river,  and  especially  the  boat-people, 
always  look  forward  to  with  great  anxiety,  and  take  their  mea- 
sures of  precaution  accordingly.  But  especially  in  that  winter 
were  people  full  of  apprehension,  as  the  ice-covering  had  ac- 
quired an  extraordinary  thickness ;  and  indeed,  in  some  places, 
could  no  longer  be  called  a  covering,  since  the  flood  in  shallow 
places  was  completely  frozen  to  the  bottom.  After  a  fierce  and 
early-occurring  season  of  severity,  the  actual  warmth  of  spring 
suddenly  broke  out,  and  the  soft  south  wind  melted  the  snow  so 
rapidly  on  the  hills  that  the  waters  ran  in  streams  down  their 
sides.  But  all  was  in  readiness ;  and  as  soon  as  the  four  students 
reached  the  bridge,  they  saw,  wherever  the  houses  on  the  banks 
of  the  Neckar  did  not  completely  occupy  its  strand  to  the  edge, 
groups  of  men,  who  had  provided  themselves  with  cressets  with 
rolls  of  pitched  torches,  called  pitch  garlands,  and  awaited  the 
spectacle  with  eager  looks.  The  bridge  itself  was  covered 
with  men,  and  scarcely  a  place  at  the  balustrade  was  to  be 
fought  out.  From  this  place  an  interesting  scene  presented 
itself.  So  far  as  you  could  see  the  banks  of  the  Neckar,  the 
torches  flamed,  and  threw  their  flickering  lights  on  the  surface 
of  ice,  on  the  crowding  spectators,  and  on  the  neighbouring 
landscape. 

In  the  city  itself,  most  of  the  houses  were  lit  up  for  the  festi- 
val, while  above  them,  in  the  country,  the  mountains  and  the 
old  castle  shrouded  themselves  in  the  deepest  gloom.  Most  of 
those  who  had  assembled  on  the  bridge,  were  men  in  their 
ordinary  dress,  who  had,  on  the  announcement  of  the  ice-break, 
hastened  hither  from  the  punch-bowl.  But  others  had  been 
roused  from  their  beds,  and  exhibited  themselves  in  costumes 
singular  enough,  over  which  they  had  hastily  thrown  their 
cloaks ;  out  of  which  their  nightcaps  peeped  above. 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  37  j 

The  explosion,  as  of  distant  thunder,  was  now  heard,  and  the 
floods  of  water  that  rushed  up  through  the  disrupted  ice  were 
seen  pouring  over  the  surface.  The  ice  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
the  bridge  cracked  and  groaned  aloud ;  deep  fissures  opened, 
and  ran  with  lightning  speed  far  and  wide.  But  as  the  mass  of 
waters  still  rushed  nearer  and  nearer,  and  the  ice  continued  to  re- 
sist its  pressure,  the  floods  rose,  and  forcing  into  the  streets,  made 
the  people  assembled  on  the  banks  flee  back  precipitately.  On 
the  other  side  of  the  bridge,  all  hands  in  the  mean  time  were 
busy  removing  the  piles  of  fire-timber  which  were  ranged  there, 
and  in  conveying  them  to  a  safe  distance.  The  huge  fragments 
of  the  already  up-torn  ice  were  sent  with  fury  over  the  ice-sur- 
face that  yet  resisted ;  in  some  places,  piling  itself  up  into 
actual  bulwarks,  and  in  others  was  heaved  into  the  streets. 
Thus  it  happened,  that  a  little  boy  who,  forgotten  of  the  rest  in 
their  flight,  had  escaped  to  the  top  of  a  pile  of  wood,  above  the 
bridge,  was,  by  one  of  the  masses  of  ice  which  was  forced 
forward  by  the  water  and  driven  directly  under  the  pile,  carried 
aloft,  together  with  the  pile.  Ere  any  one  could  spring  to  his 
assistance,  the  moment  Was  come  when  the  opposing  ice  could 
no  longer  maintain  its  resistance  to  the  accumulating  flood.  It 
burst  with  loud  explosions,  and  raising  itself  furiously  with  the 
other  fragments  rushed  forward  towards  the  bridge.  Through 
the  long  contest,  the  water  had  acquired  the  most  terrible  agita- 
tion, and  when  the  victory  came  at  once,  it  formed  itself  into  a 
headlong  stream,  which  carried  the  mass  of  ice  on  which  the 
boy  was,  rapidly  towards  the  middle  of  the  flood.  The  boy, 
surrounded  by  the  raging  element,  shrieked  in  the  most  fearful 
manner  for  help.  His  cries  of  misery  were  scarcely  to  be  heard, 
but  they  were  not  necessary  to  fill  every  spectator  with  terror 
and  commiseration.  But  who  shall  help  him !  Many  an  able 
swimmer  was  there,  but  none  would  undertake  so  desperate  an 
enterprise.  Some  cried  out  to  throw  a  rope  from  the  bridge^ 
that  the  boy  might  lay  hold  of,  but  this  was  impracticable,  for 
in  the  moment  in  which  the  ice-masses  struck  the  piers  of  the 
bridge,  they  were  scattered  into  fragments,  and  the  stone  bridge 
itself  trembled  with  the  shock  of  their  dashing  against  it.  Already 


372  THE  STUDENT'S 

the  ice-mass,  on  which  the  boy  sate  in  despair,  approached  the 
piers.  Every  spectator  watched  the  horrible  catastrophe  with 
breathless  expectation;  when  the  masses  of  ice,  which  now 
passed  in  countless  numbers,  blocked  up  first  one  and  then 
another  arch  of  the  bridge.  There  was  a  momentary  pause  in 
the  progress  of  the  ice.  At  the  crisis  of  this  terrific  spectacle,  a 
band  of  lively  music  approached  the  bridge.  It  was  the  wild 
troop  of  students,  who,  having  completed  their  round,  and 
finished  all  their  Vivats !  and  Lebe  Hochs !  were  marching  past 
with  their  torches,  and  amongst  them  was  seen  the  Red  Fisher- 
man, who  holding  in  one  hand  a  torch,  and  in  the  other  a  pipe? 
was  striding  on  with  open  breast,  and  in  his  shirt-sleeves. 

"  Ackermann !  Ackermann  !"  shouted  the  multitude,  "  he  must 
help!  He  alone  can  do  it!" 

The  approaching  train  rushed  upon  the  bridge ;  the  torch- 
bearers  flew  to  the  balustrades  to  cast  a  light  upon  the  scene — 
the  music  ceased  in  an  instant.  The  Red  Fisherman,  on  whom 
all  eyes  were  turned,  cast  but  one  glance  towards  the  child ; 
threw  his  torch  on  the  ice  below,  and  ran  down  from  the  bridge 
to  the  banks  of  the  Neckar.  It  was  higli  time,  for  the  ice-masses 
again  began  to  put  themselves  in  motion.  Boldly  the  fisherman 
sprung  from  one  block  of  ice  to  another ;  already  was  he  near 
the  boy,  when  the  ice  broke  beneath  him  ;  yet  he  fought  despe- 
rately against  the  rushing  water.  He  reached  the  boy,  and 
endeavoured  to  raise  himself  upon  the  ice-mass ;  — at  the  same 
moment  it  went  to  pieces,  and  both  the  fisherman  and  the  boy 
disappeared  for  some  seconds.  The  people  gave  them  up  as 
lost  for  ever,  when  a  voice  was  heard  from  the  other  side  of  the 
bridge,  crying  "  A  rope  !  a  rope  !"  It  was  the  fisherman  him- 
self, who  stood  on  the  basement  at  the  foot  of  the  pier  with  the 
boy  in  his  arms !  He  stood  up  to  the  middle  in  water,  but  he 
held  fast  by  a  projection  of  the  pier.  A  rope  with  a  large  piece 
of  wood  tied  to  it  was  speedily  let  down  by  some  of  the  fisher- 
men, and  Ackermann  with  the  boy  was  hauled  up  with  the  help 
of  the  students.  As  soon  as  his  head  appeared  on  a  level  with 
the  parapet,  he  handed  over  the  boy  to  the  people,  and  then 
himself  leaped  over  the  iron  balustrade.  With  a  loud  "  Vivat !' 


NEW  YEAR'S  EVE.  373 

he  was  here  received ;  and  the  musicians  blew  the  finest 
flourish  that  they  had  executed  on  this  remarkable  New-  Year's 
night.  The  troop  of  students  accompanied  the  Red  Fisherman 
with  loud  acclamations,  who  quickly  put  himself  in  dry  clothes  ; 
not  regarding  some  slight  wounds  which  he  had  received  from 
the  ice-masses.  The  students  took  him  into  their  midst,  and 
"  Free-night !  free-night !"  resounded  on  all  sides. 

This  cry  of  triumph  means  that  they  will  revel  the  whole 
night  through ;  and  this  takes  place  either  at  the  room  of  some 
student,  or  at  a  kneip.  In  the  last  case,  the  permission  of  the 
police  is  necessary.  These  free-nights  are  only  held  on  extra- 
ordinary occasions,  or,  as  in  many  cases,  when  without  any 
particular  cause  the  sons  of  the  Muses  find  themselves  in  a 
thoroughly  joyous  humour. 

These  were  especially  frequent  formerly  amongst  the  so-called 
Lumpia.  This  means  a  union  of  students,  who  bind  themselves 
for  a  certain  time  to  give  themselves  up  to  the  Lump  ;  that  is  to 
doing  nothing,  and  to  the  wildest  pleasures, — to  drinking,  play- 
ing at'hazard,  and  so  on.  To  the  honour  of  the  students  these 
wild  engagements  are  rare,  and  are  in  the  strictest  manner  pro- 
hibited by  the  laws. 

The  Red  Fisherman  warmed  his  stiffened  limbs  at  the  kneip 
with  punch,  and  a  collection  was  made  on  the  spot,  whose  pro- 
ceeds were  handed  to  him  as  his  reward.  The  four  friends  in 
the  mean  time  had  taken  the  child,  and  brought  it  into  a  neigh- 
bouring inn,  where  it  was  undressed  and  put  to  bed,  until  the 
mother,  who  did  not  till  some  time  afterwards  learn  the  whole 
of  the  circumstances,  could  be  fetched. 

After  the  many  events  of  the  night,  the  wearied  party  has- 
tened home,  to  dream  over  again  what  they  had  witnessed, 
variously  metamorphosed  by  fancy,  and  one  image  mixed  up 
and  exchanged  with  another. 

32 


CHAPTER  XXI. 


THE    MARCHING    FORTH. 


We  Burschen  freshly  forth  to  the  number  of  seventeen  hundred ;  thou  at  our 
head,  and  butchers  and  tailors  and  shopkeepers  behind  us,  and  innkeeper  and 
barber,  and  all  the  trade  guilds  of  the  city,  swearing  to  storm  the  place,  if  a  hair 
of  the  Burschens'  heads  is  but  crumpled. — Schiller's  Robber. 


BEFORE  we  permit  the  Student  to  depart  from  the  happy 
Burschendom  into  Philisterium,  we  will  see  in  what  manner  he 
generally  takes  his  farewell  of  the  university. 

For  this,  there  are  three  ways :  either  the  quiet  way,  in  which 
we  shall  presently  see  Mr.  Traveller  depart ;  or  the  still  quieter 
one  in  the  stillness  of  the  night,  in  order  to  avoid  the  hands 
of  his  creditors;  or,  finally,  the  compulsory  one,  which  the 
Bursche  must  generally  take  who  has  made  too  much  noise  in 
the  world. 

We  have  already  made  ourselves  acquainted  with  different 
excesses  on  which  lie  the  penalties  of  banishment,  and  we  will 
here  speak  of  the  greatest  of  all  these  excesses,  at  least  of  that, 
in  respect  to  its  application  to  members,  the  very  greatest — the 
Marching  Forth.  As  the  duel  is  resorted  to,  to  enforce  justice 
from  one  student  towards  another;  so  it  is  the  Marching  Forth, 
in  which  the  students  not  merely  leave  the  bounds  of  order,  but 
the  university-city  itself,  which  is  regarded  as  the  means  of 
avenging  the  injured  body  upon  the  whole  city,  for  an  en- 
croachment upon  its  rights.  That  the  reader  may  obtain  a 


THE  AUSZUG ;  OR,  MARCHING  FORTH.  375 

clear  notion  of  the  Marching  Forth,  we  will  describe  the  one 
which  took  place  amongst  the  students  of  Heidelberg,  in  the 
year  1828. 

The  Museum  in  Heidelberg,  a  building  dedicated  to  social 
entertainment  and  pleasures,  was  built  in  1827,  and  completed 
in  the  following  year.  The  rules  for  the  management  of  the 
institution,  which,  after  careful  consideration  and  proof,  were 
adopted,  did  not  in  some  particulars  please  a  part  of  the  stu- 
dents ;  others,  however,  found  nothing  to  object  to,  and  about 
seventy  students  immediately  enrolled  themselves  as  members. 
Instead  now  of  leaving  every  one  to  his  liberty,  a  part  of  the 
discontented  came  to  the  conclusion,  that  the  museum  must,  so 
far  as  the  university  was  concerned,  be  put  altogether  under  the 
bann.  As  it  was  now  found  that  they  laboured  zealously  to  this 
end,  the  teachers  took  the  proper  measures  to  prevent  such  a 
circumstance.  A  member  of  the  senate,  in  whom  the  better 
portion  of  the  students  had  always  the  strongest  moral  reliance, 
endeavoured  by  every  means  to  make  such  of  the  students  as 
stood  high  in  the  respect  of  their  fellows,  clearly  to  comprehend, 
that  such  a  bann  had  the  severest  enactment  of  academical  law 
against  it;  that  it  might  render  the  Baden  students  unfortunate 
for  life,  if  they  allowed  themselves  to  become  partisans;  that  it 
might  lead  to  the  most  angry  contentions,  if  those  who  had 
already  become  members  of  the  Museum,  would  not  suffer 
themselves  to  be  compelled  to  such  an  act  of  evacuation ;  and 
the  Senate  could  not  remain  unconcerned  spectators,  by  any 
means,  of  such  disorder,  not  just  then  especially,  as  on  the 
near  approaching  name-day  of  the  Grand  Duke,  the  Museum 
was  to  be  solemnly  and  ceremoniously  opened. 

But  the  intelligence  quickly  spread,  that  the  Burschenschaft, 
which  by  degrees  and  secretly  had  again  sprung  up,  had  pro- 
nounced the  bann  with  great  formality  and  haste,  and  that  they 
were  labouring  with  all  their  might  to  compel  all  other  persons 
into  the  undertaking,  and  even  to  draw  the  natives  into  the 
matter  along  with  them.  Active  measures  were  therefore 
unavoidable  on  the  part  of  the  Senate.  It  accordingly  decreed, 
on  the  13th  of  August,  that  immediately  with  the  break  of  the 


376  THE  AUSZUG ;  OR 

following  day,  the  members  of  the  Burschenschaft  should  be 
brought  to  trial  on  account  of  the  promulgation  of  the  bann, 
and  that  they  should  be  arrested  in  such  a  way,  that  there 
might  be  no  concerted  plan  laid,  upon  what  they  should  state 
in  their  defence,  and  in  such  a  way  also  that  no  student  should 
be  absent  from  home. 

On  the  14th  of  August,  the  beadles  received  at  a  quarter  to 
four  in  the  morning,  the  order  to  pronounce  house-arrest  to 
some,  and  to  remove  others  to  the  university  prison,  preparatory 
to  their  being  called  up  for  hearing.  The  trial  began  imme- 
diately, and  would  have  been  completed  the  same  day,  had  the 
laws  found  obedience.  But  immediately  on  the  sitting  of  the 
court,  there  arose  in  every  street,  the  cry  of  "  Bursch,  come 
forth !"  This  is  a  call  which  every  student  must  uncon- 
ditionally obey,  on  pain  of  proscription.  It  is  therefore,  as  a 
compulsion  in  opposition  to  the  laws,  and  as  the  most  con- 
venient method  of  speedily  raising  a  tumult,  punished  with  the 
sharper  expulsion. 

So  ran  the  ringleaders  through  the  city  with  aloud  "  Bursch, 
come  forth  !"  drew  the  students  together  from  all  quarters,  and 
rushed  with  them,  with  great  uproar,  into  the  front  of  the  uni- 
versity, where  the  Senate  had  speedily  assembled,  and  stood  in 
presence  of  the  tumultuous  throng  at  an  open  window.  Instead 
of  applying  to  the  Prorector,  as  they  should  have  done,  had 
they  ground  of  complaint,  they  even  treated  with  contempt  two 
summonses  from  the  Senate  to  send  deputies  to  explain  their 
claims  or  demands,  and  immediately  in  the  face  of  the  Senate 
proceeded,  with  loud  outcries,  to  make  a  desperate  onset  on  the 
door  of  the  adjoining  academical  buildings,  with  sticks  and 
kicks,  so  that  the  upper  beadle,  to  prevent  further  mischief, 
was  obliged  to  liberate  the  incarcerated  students.  This  being 
accomplished,  they  commenced  their  march  forth  towards 
Schwetzengen. 

The  whole  city  was  in  uproar.  The  shops  were  closed  out 
of  fear  of  the  wild  faction.  Every  where  chaises  rattled 
through  the  streets ;  the  boot-foxes  ran  here  and  there ;  the 
inhabitants  looked  full  of  trouble  out  of  their  windows ;  when 


MARCHING  FORTH.  377 

a  student,  with  his  sword  in  his  hand,  galloped  through  the 
streets  with  the  fearful  cry — "  Bursch,  come  forth !"  Most  of 
the  students  went  along  with  the  train,  only  because  the  Com- 
ment, or  Students'  Code  of  Laws,  demanded  it,  without  well 
knowing  for  what  purpose.  The  wild  throng  rushed  into  the 
houses  of  the  dilatory,  in  order  to  rouse  them  out  of  bed. 
Hastily,  every  one  packed  up  what  was  most  necessary  and 
threw  it  into  the  carriage,  or  buckled  it  upon  a  horse ;  and 
when  no  longer  carriage  or  horse  was  procurable,  the  boot- 
foxes  must  become  baggage-bearers. 

In  order  to  rouse  all  into  a  necessary  degree  of  resentment, 
and  to  keep  it  up,  the  ringleaders  circulated  false  stories. 
They  spread  it  every  where  that  the  authorities  had  dragged 
the  students  out  of  their  beds  in  the  night ;  that  they  had  thrust 
them  into  a  hole  where  none  could  stand  upright,  and  where 
there  was  not  a  single  seat  to  rest  upon ;  while  the  fact  was, 
that  they  who  were  said  to  have  suffered  so  much  maltreatment 
in  the  night,  were  conducted  to  the  academical  buildings  in 
clear  daylight.  Yet,  in  the  excitement  of  the  moment,  these 
false  reports  found  credit,  and  with  the  "  Bursch,  come  forth  !" 
which  raged  like  a  running  fire  through  the  streets,  they  availed 
in  a  very  short  time,  to  bring  the  whole  student  host  together. 

They  who  were  on  horseback  placed  themselves  at  the  head 
of  the  procession  ;  rode  hither  and  thither,  in  order  to  quicken 
the  motions  of  the  dilatory,  and  to  maintain  the  whole  train  in 
order.  A  long  line  of  carriages  followed  them,  of  every 
description  that  could  be  got  together  in  the  haste  of  the  occa- 
sion. Part  were  chaises,  in  which  the  students  rode  ;  part  were 
wagons,  on  which  were  hastily  loaded  their  packages.  All  the 
students  had  armed  themselves  in  haste,  as  well  as  they  might, 
with  swords,  rapiers,  and  pistols.  They  who  found  no  place  in 
the  carriages,  or  on  horseback,  went  on  foot,  and  a  great 
swarm  of  boot-foxes  followed  who  were  loaded  with  all  kinds 
of  house-gear,  as  pipes,  dressing-gowns,  coats,  and  so  on.  A  vast 
crowd  of  people,  consisting  of  school-youths  who  had  to  thank 
the  students  to-day  for  a  holiday,  and  of  all  kinds  of  people  who, 
in  a  university  city,  draw  support  from  the  students,  added 

32* 


378  THE  AUZUG;  OR, 

themselves  to  the  train,  and  increased  the  uproar  and  alarm, 
with  curses  and  insults,  that  the  students  should  be  suffered  to 
go  away.  The  inhabitants  of  the  city  looked  down  in  wonder 
and  curiosity  from  their  windows  roused  from  their  sleep  by 
the  noise,  and  gazed  on  the  motley  throng  who,  with  shouts  and 
singing  of  Burschen-songs,  swept  by. 

At  length  the  rear  of  the  train  disappeared  through  the  city 
gate,  and  a  strange  silence  reigned  in  the  deserted  town.  The 
doors  opened,  and  the  Philistines  stepped  out  into  the  streets 
together,  to  talk  over  the  fatal  story.  In  the  mean  time  a  pro- 
fessor might  be  seen,  with  serious  countenance  and  hasty  steps, 
hurrying  through  the  streets,  and  people  looked  doubtfully  after 
him,  or  one  or  another  of  the  citizens  detained  him  to  snatch  a 
couple  of  words  as  to  what  was  to  be  done  in  this  necessity  of 
the  Fatherland.  Here  and  there  also  might  be  seen  a  solitary 
student  who  had  not  been  able  to  join  the  train  in  time,  now 
hastening  towards  one  or  other  of  the  city  gates ;  since  every 
one  is  compelled,  on  pain  of  entire  proscription,  to  quit  the  city 
in  case  of  a  Marching-Forth,  even  if  he  does  not  join  the  train. 

When  the  train  arrived  in  Schwetzengen,  the  discontented 
saw  that  the  territory  of  Baden  was  not  safe  for  them,  and  that 
by  passing  the  frontier  they  would  enjoy  more  freedom.  Sud- 
denly there  followed  them  from  many  quarters  the  report  "  The 
dragoons  come,  to  fall  upon  us !"  and  all  ran  with  wild  haste  to 
Ketsch,  a  village  on  the  Rhine,  where  they  caused  themselves 
to  be  ferried  over  into  Rheinish  Bavaria.  This  false  report  of 
this  falling  of  the  troopers  upon  them  had  thus  arisen.  Imme- 
diately on  the  occurrence  of  the  excess  here  related,  the  Senate 
held  it  necessary  for  the  protection  of  the  city,  hastily  to  request 
a  hundred  dragoons  to  be  sent  for  from  Mannheim.  These  hun- 
dred dragoons  marched  out  of  Mannheim,  about  nine  miles 
below  Ketsch,  only  at  half-past  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon, 
after  the  students  had,  in  fact,  crossed  the  Rhine  at  Ketsch; 
and  they  never  directed  their  march  at  all  against  the  students, 
but  rode  direct  to  Heidelberg.  As  it  was  then  there  well  ascer- 
tained that  the  Marchers-Forth  had  taken  up  their  quarters  for 
the  present  in  Frankenthal,  where  part  of  them  were  lodged  in 


MARCHING  FORTH.  379 

the  town,  and  part  of  them  had  encamped  in  the  neighbourhood 
under  tents,  and  that  many  of  them  had  become  involved  in  the 
transaction  through  erroneous  information,  a  member  of  the 
Senate  was  requested  by  the  Curatorium  to  proceed  to  Frank- 
enthal,  and  to  endeavour  to  bring  the  young  men  to  reason. 
This  took  place  on  the  sixteenth  of  August,  but  without  success. 
On  the  contrary,  the  emissary  of  the  Senate  was  sent  back  with 
a  remonstrance,  very  numerously  signed,  which  concluded  with 
a  menacing  clause,  and  demanded  that  the  Senate  should  gua- 
rantee the  whole  body  of  students  against  all  penalties,  on 
account  of  this  transaction,  and  should  cause  Heidelberg,  with- 
out delay,  to  be  evacuated  by  the  troops.  It  was  also  added, 
by  word  of  mouth,  that  the  bann  pronounced  on  the  Museum, 
could  not  be  retracted. 

A  similar  endeavour,  made  through  the  university  Amtmann, 
on  the  eighteenth  of  August,  received  as  little  attention,  although 
the  Museum,  in  many  points,  had  yielded  to  their  demands,  and 
thereupon  was  immediately  relieved  from  the  proscription.  The 
resentment  against  the  Senate  continued  unabated;  and  therefore, 
on  the  evening  of  the  eighteenth,  in  all  haste,  the  academy  was 
declared  to  be  under  the  bann ;  this,  however,  was  not  done 
through  the  voting  of  individuals,  but  effected  by  the  dreaded 
ringleaders  pronouncing  the  bann,  demanding  then  the  others  to 
accede  to  it,  though  many  were  opposed  to  it;  and  thus  the 
resolution  was  passed  in  a  painful  silence,  since  individuals  saw 
dangers  on  all  sides  of  them  if  they  refused.  Yet  in  that  night, 
and  in  the  course  of  the  next  day,  numbers  quitted  Frankenthal, 
and  returned  towards  Heidelberg.  Here,  when  they  came  to 
understand  exactly  the  real  circumstances  of  the  case,  there 
was  regret  and  general  discontent.  A  great  number  of  the 
most  noble  young  men  loudly  declared  the  bann  to  be  disho- 
nourable, to  be  null  and  void,  because  brought  about  by  decep- 
tion ;  to  be  contrary  to  all  custom  and  precedent,  and  thereupon 
came  some  of  the  most  artful  proceedings  to  be  talked  of:  for 
example,  that  in  the  remonstrance  sent  to  the  Senate,  there 
were  forged  names  of  students  who  were  absent  at  the  time, 
and  that  the  menacing  clause  had  been  surreptitiously  intro- 


380  THE  AUSZUG;  OR, 

duced.  In  fact,  the  natives  of  Baden  had  had  no  part  in  the 
declaration  of  the  bann. 

On  the  twentieth  of  August  the  classes  again  were  opened, 
while  the  trials  were  still  proceeding.  The  ringleaders  were 
punished  with  expulsion ;  others  were  banished  for  a  certain 
term;  and  a  greater  number  imprisoned  for  a  longer  or 
shorter  period.  The  attention  of  the  court  was  turned  by  these 
events  afresh  on  the  still  continuance  of  the  Burschenschaft,  and 
it  was  pursued  with  yet  greater  severity  of  proscription  than 
before.  But  the  Studentschaft  had  so  far  achieved  its  original 
object,  that  its  demands  on  the  Museum  were  for  the  most  part 
conceded. 

Such  Marchings-Forth  are  of  rare  occurrence,  yet  this  is  not 
the  only  one  that  has  taken  place  in  Heidelberg.  Many  years 
before  this,  occurred  a  something  similar  one,  on  account  of 
contentions  with  the  military,  which  then  lay  in  Heidelberg. 

A  student,  as  he  went  past  the  watch-house,  forgot  to  take 
the  pipe  from  his  mouth.  He  came  into  contention  thereupon 
with  the  soldier  on  guard,  who  called  an  officer,  by  whom  the 
student  was  very  much  insulted.  This  gave  occasion  to  a 
Marching-Forth,  which,  however,  proceeded  no  further  than  to 
Neuenheim,  about  a  mile  from  the  city,  whence  the  students  at 
once  returned,  all  their  demands  being  complied  with ;  which 
were,  that  a  full  amnesty  should  be  guaranteed  for  all  that  was 
past,  and  that  the  soldiers  should  be  removed.  Moreover,  the 
military  were  obliged  to  post  themselves  on  the  bridge,  the 
officer  at  their  head,  and  so  present  arms  while  the  students 
marched  past  again  into  the  city  in  triumph,  and  with  music 
playing  before  them. 

Where  soldiers  and  students  are  brought  together  in  one  city, 
collisions  are  inevitable;  at  least  in  the  smaller  cities,  where 
both  cannot  be  sufficiently  mixed  and  lost  in  the  great  mass  of 
the  people.  Many  contentions  have  heretofore  arisen  out  of 
such  collocation ;  and  thus  occurred  also  the  Marching-Forth 
from  Giessen  in  the  year  1819.  The  military  having  in  the 
most  unallowable  manner  acted  towards  the  students,  and  one 

of  the  students  coming  to  a  quarrel  with  an  officer,  was  ex- 

• 


MARCHING  FORTH.  381 

tremely  insulted  by  him.  There  appeared  in  consequence  of  this 
a  ministerial  rescript,  in  which  it  was  ordered  that  the  military 
in  future  should  only  be  called  out  against  the  students  by  a 
requisition  from  the  Senate,  and  that  all  acts  of  illegality  already 
alleged  against  the  military  on  the  part  of  the  students  should  be 
strictly  investigated,  and  every  just  satisfaction  made  to  them. 
There  immediately  appeared  a  judgment  on  the  part  of  the 
military  college,  by  which  the  officer  who  had  insulted  the 
student  was  condemned  to  fourteen  days'  close  arrest,  which 
was  immediately  to  take  place;  and  was,  morever,  required, 
in  the  presence  of  the  rector  of  the  university  and  of  the  colonel 
of  the  officer,  to  beg  pardon  of  the  student.  The  aforesaid 
ministerial  rescription  was  now  made  known  to  the  students  by 
four  deputies  of  the  Senate,  who  waited  on  them  in  the  place  of 
their  retreat ;  whereupon  they  immediately  resolved  to  return 
to  Giessen,  and  to  restore  every  thing  to  its  old  course  and 
order. 

To  give  yet  another  example  of  a  Marching-Forth,  we  may 
take  the  disturbance  in  Gottingen  in  the  year  1818.  Conten- 
tions arose  between  the  then  students  and  the  members  of  some 
of  the  trade  guilds ;  amongst  others,  with  that  of  the  butchers' 
guild.  The  house  of  a  butcher  who  had  especially  insulted  the 
students  was  very  much  damaged,  and  the  windows  of  another 
house  beaten  in.  A  commission  was  despatched  by  the  govern- 
ment to  Gottingen  to  inquire  into  and  quell  the  disturbance.  The 
means,  however,  which  were  adopted  in  order  to  bring  the  in- 
censed student  youth  again  within  the  bounds  of  order,  were  not 
the  most  fitting ;  and  the  calling  in  of  the  military  only  made  the 
matter  worse.  The  students  refused  to  succumb  to  a  strange 
power.  They  boldly  attacked  the  hussars;  these  drew  their 
swords,  and  in  the  skirmish  many  sudents  were  dangerously 
wounded.  About  eight  hundred  of  the  students  now  marched 
out  to  Witzenhausen.  They  sent  by  the  hands  of  four  deputies, 
a  memorial  to  the  Senate,  who  delivered  it  and  returned.  In 
this  document  they  complained,  that  one  of  their  fellow-students 
had  been  maltreated  by  a  butcher,  and  that  the  butcher  had  not 
been  visited  with  the  punishment  due  to  his  offence;  that  the 


382  THE  AUSZUG;  OR, 

sending  of  a  royal  commission  altered  the  condition  of  their 
rights ;  that  the  authority  of  the  same  had  been  so  far  illegal 
that  the  reigning  prince  had  not  yet  confirmed  it;  and  finally, 
that  the  people  had  been  attacked  by  the  military  in  time  of 
peace,  whereby  many  had  been  wounded. 

The  ministry,  thereupon,  issued  a  rescript,  which  commanded 
the  whole  body  of  students  to  return,  and  if  they  refused  obe- 
dience, threatened  them  with  the  loss  of  every  claim  to  future 
employment  by  the  state,  as  well  as  of  all  stipends  that  they 
might  enjoy. 

After  an  absence  of  more  than  eight  days,  the  greater  part  of 
the  students,  who  had  scattered  themselves  through  the  country, 
returned,  exerting,  however,  on  their  side  a  right  of  retaliation, 
by  declaring  the  university  to  be  for  two  and  a  half  years  under 
the  bann  to  all  foreigners.  The  foreigners  immediately  took 
their  departure,  and  only  about  six  hundred  students  were  left 
in  Gottingen, — about  half  of  the  number  who  had  studied  in  it 
before  those  disturbances  took  place. 

In  Witzenhausen  the  people  had  fleeced  the  students  of  nearly 
all  their  cash.  All  necessaries  of  life,  during  their  abode 
there,  were  raised  to  a  monstrous  price,  and  the  burgers  of  that 
place  charged  them  individually  for  a  week's  lodging  as  much 
as  a  louis-d'or.  Therefore  now,  to  quit  Gottingen,  they  were 
obliged  to  dispose  of  every  thing  that  they  could  possibly  spare. 

Many  natives  also,  spite  of  the  menaces  of  the  ministers, 
quitted  the  cities ;  and  Gottingen,  in  fact,  presented  a  melan- 
choly aspect.  The  departure  of  the  foreigners  was  injurious  to 
the  city,  in  two  respects  ;  many  workmen  depended  on  them  for 
subsistence,  and  besides  this,  they  left  many  debts  behind  them. 
It  was  natural,  in  these  circumstances,  that  many  workmen  too 
should  quit  the  place,  since  their  means  of  livelihood  had  failed, 
and  thus  the  emptiness  of  Gottingen  became  still  more  apparent. 

The  sentence  of  the  ministry  upon  these  disturbances  con- 
demned one  student  to  entire  expulsion ;  many  to  the  Consilium 
abeundi,  or  confinement  in  the  university  prison  ;  and  the  master 
butcher  also  was  punished  with  eight  days'  imprisonment,  with 
bread  and  water.  There  was  a  further  commission  appointed 


MARCHING  FORTH.  393 

for  the  trial  of  the  originators  of  the  barm,  and  these  also  were 
punished. 

Thus  peace  and  order  were  again  restored ;  and  in  order  to 
maintain  these,  precautionary  measures  were  adopted ;  namely, 
every  one  studying  in  Gottingen,  and  every  fresh  comer,  must 
sign  a  declaration,  that  he  would  take  no  part  in  the  carrying 
into  effect  the  bann  pronounced  against  the  university  ;  and  that 
he  would  never,  either  by  word  or  deed,  allow  it  to  be  supposed 
that  he  acknowledged  that  bann  as  actually  existing.  Spite  of 
all  these  regulations,  it  was  a  very  long  time  before  Gottingen 
was  able  to  regain  its  former  state  of  prosperity. 

These  Marchings-Forth  may  serve  to  show  how  jealously  the 
students  defend  their  privileges,  not  only  against  individuals,  but 
even  against  the  state.  The  student  avenges  himself  upon  any 
one  by  whom  he  is  unjustly  attacked.  A  ludicrous  story  con- 
nected with  these  practices  occurs  to  our  recollection,  which 
happened  very  shortly  after  the  tragic  act  of  Sand. 

An  actor,  who  played  heroic  characters  in  the  theatre  at 
Darmstadt,  was  at  the  supper-table  in  the  inn  there,  and  gave  a 
loose  very  freely  and  sourly  to  his  remarks  upon  students  and 
universities.  A  student  from  Heidelberg,  who  was  present, 
and  had  in  his  possession  a  letter  to  deliver  to  this  very  actor, 
determined  to  punish  him  a  little  for  his  observations,  and 
therefore  on  this  evening  did  not  present  him  the  letter.  In  the 
morning  he  went  to  the  dwelling  of  the  actor,  caused  his  room 
to  be  shown  to  him,  and  finding  him  alone,  inquired  with  a 

dark  countenance — "  Are  you  the  Herr  Court-actor  F r  ?" 

"  Yes." — "  Are  you  really  the  Herr  Court-actor  F r?' — he 

reiterated  sternly.  "  Yes !" — "  Now !"  cried  the  student,  with 
a  loud  voice,  and  thrusting  his  hand  into  his  bosom.  The  poor 
hero,  who  imagined  he  had  got  a  dagger  there,  darted  at  full 
speed  away.  The  student  laughing  called  him  back.  "  Stop !" 
said  he,  "  stop !  it  is  only  a  letter !" 

In  recent  times,  when  people  are  not  so  pliant  towards  the 
students,  the  Marchings-Forth  have  more  and  more  disappeared. 
In  the  year  1838,  the  students  conceived  that  their  rights  were 
infringed  by  the  gendarmerie.  They  assembled  at  the  Hirsch- 


384  THE  AUSZUG;  OR, 

gasse ;  one  of  them  stated  the  case  to  the  rest,  and  invited  them 
to  subscribe  a  memorial  on  the  subject  to  the  Senate,  request- 
ing the  removal  of  those  gendarmes.  As  the  doors  were  in  the 
meantime  all  guarded  by  the  Chore  people,  so  all  complied  with 
the  invitation.  When  all  had  signed,  they  returned  to  the  city 
in  one  body,  two  and  two  abreast ;  sang  "  Free  is  the  Bursch," 
and  presented  their  memorial  to  the  Prorector.  They  derived, 
however,  little  satisfaction  from  this  proceeding ;  and  as  the 
document  contained  expressions  dishonourable  to  the  Senate, 
some  of  the  ringleaders  were  punished. 

But  the  cry  "  Bursch,  come  forth !"  has  not  always  been 
employed  for  the  purpose  of  effecting  a  Marching-Forth  in 
opposition  to  the  laws.  It  has  on  many  an  occasion  served  to 
assemble  speedily  the  Burschen  for  the  noblest  objects.  It  was 
thus  in  Heidelberg,  when  at  one  time  the  bitterness  against  the 
Jews  had  spread  itself  through  Germany.  Suddenly  a  great 
throng  of  Handwerksburschen  in  this  city  also,  and  others  of  that 
class  who  have  nothing  to  lose  and  always  a  chance  to  win 
something  in  every  revolution,  had  got  together,  and  scoured 
the  streets,  crying  "  Hep  !  Hep  !"  They  hastened  to  the  houses 
of  the  Jews,  to  plunder  them  and  mishandle  their  inmates.  The 
city  soldiers  were  called  upon  to  disperse  the  rioters,  but  in  a 
cowardly  manner  refused  to  do  their  duty.  People  were  in  a 
great  perplexity  how  to  protect  the  unfortunate  Jews.  Some 
students  met  the  then  Prorector,  who  was  on  his  way  to  the 
Senate,  and  engaged  to  him  speedily  to  restore  quiet  if  he  would 
only  allow  them  to  cry,  "  Bursch,  come  forth !"  The  Prorector 
took  the  responsibility  upon  himself,  and  scarcely  was  the  shout 
of  "  Bursch,  come  forth !"  raised,  when  from  all  sides  came  run- 
ning the  students,  armed  with  their  swords.  One  of  those  who 
came  first,  placed  himself  at  the  door  of  one  of  the  richest  Jews 
in  the  city,  against  whom  the  mass  of  the  mob  were  most  despe- 
rate, and  drawing  his  sword,  called  to  the  pressing  throngs,  full 
of  zeal  for  the  good  cause — "  Only  over  my  corpse  lies  your 
way  into  this  house !"  The  assailants  fell  back  with  terror ; 
other  students  speedily  came  to  his  aid,  and  chased  away  the 
rabble.  One  of  the  professors  took  a  sword  from  the  hand  of  a 


MARCHING  FORTH.  395 

student,  and  led  on  the  sons  of  the  Muses.  They  surrounded 
the  houses  which  the  rioters  had  already  forced  their  way  into, 
holding  their  drawn  swords  before  the  windows  so  as  to  prevent 
all  escape,  while  others,  rushing  into  the  house,  seized  the  plun- 
derers, and  gave  them  into  the  hands  of  the  police.  Peace  was 
in  a  very  short  time  restored.  The  Jews  made  a  public  acknow- 
ledgment of  their  thanks  to  the  academicians,  and  the  Senate 
cited  before  them  such  of  the  students  as  had  most  distinguished 
themselves,  in  order  to  thank  them  themselves,  and  through 
them  to  thank  all  the  others  who  had  given  such  timely  and 
successful  aid. 

In  other  circumstances  of  danger  too,  the  students  have  often 
distinguished  themselves.  This  has  been  especially  the  case  in 
fires,  where,  placing  themselves  in  long  rows  from  the  scene  of 
burning  to  the  river,  they  have  made  the  water-buckets  pass 
from  hand  to  hand  with  astonishing  celerity,  and  all  the  time 
have  relieved  their  work  with  singing. 

Once  also  they  executed,  in  Heidelberg,  justice  in  the  promptest 
mannet.  It  was  when,  at  the  instigation  of  Prussia,  Baden  lost 
again  the  freedom  of  the  press,  which  the  Grand  Duke  Leopold 
had  conferred  on  it  at  his  entrance  on  the  government.  Over 
this  circumstance  a  great  bitterness  was  felt  in  Heidelberg.  Just 
at  this  crisis  the  Prussian  students  at  that  university  celebrated 
the  birthday  of  their  king,  as  they  are  accustomed  to  do  every 
year.  This  took  place  in  a  Commers  in  Neckarsteinach,  and 
as  they  are  often  accustomed,  they  returned  to  the  city  in  the 
evening  in  an  illuminated  barge,  down  the  Neckar,  with  fire- 
works. A  report  had  spread  itself,  that  the  people,  who  beheld 
the  spectacle  from  the  Neckar  bridge,  would  insult  the  Prus- 
sians, when  they  passed  under  the  bridge.  The  police  were 
concerting  preventive  measures,  when  the  other  students  re- 
quested to  be  allowed  to  maintain  the  peace.  It  was  granted  to 
them ;  and  in  the  evening,  they  awaited  quietly  in  their  kneips 
the  intelligence  of  the  approach  of  the  festive  barge.  They  then 
spread  themselves  amongst  the  crowd  upon  the  bridge.  As  the 
boat  now  drew  near,  and  the  customary  "  Vivat,  the  king  of 
Prussia !"  was  heard  resounding  from  it,  the  mob  on  the  bridge 

33 


386  THE  AUSZUG;  OR, 

began  to  bawl  out  a  "  Pereat !"  and  one  Handwerksbursch  was 
bold  enough  to  fling  down  a  stone.  In  a  moment  such  a  storm 
of  cuffs  and  boxes  on  the  ears  was  rained  down  from  all  quar- 
ters on  the  disturbers,  that  they  were  compelled  to  fly  from  the 
hands  of  those  who  were  an  overmatch  for  them;  thus  the 
bridge  was  speedily  evacuated  by  the  whole  tribe,  and  the  barge 
came  to  its  anchorage  without  further  molestation. 

Another  cause  which  often  compels  the  students  to  quit  the 
university,  and  indeed  in  all  stillness,  is  debt.  That  the  young 
men  at  the  High-School  may  readily  fall  into  debt,  is  easy  to 
conceive.  Most  of  them  were  till  this  time  at  schools  where 
they  were  quite  dependent  on  their  parents,  and  have  now,  for 
the  first  time,  considerable  sums  in  their  hands;  and  beyond  this, 
the  way  into  debt  is  made  so  particularly  easy  to  the  student. 
The  landlords,  the  shopkeepers,  and  all  others,  who  derive  an 
advantage  from  the  students,  freely  give  credit,  or  pump,  as  the 
students  term  it.  They  do  it  the  more  willingly,  since  it  is  a 
good  opportunity  to  make  the  account  a  little  larger  (since  the 
English  and  students,  as  the  student  says,  generally  chop  above 
the  ear,  that  is,  suffer  themselves  to  be  overcharged) ;  and  more- 
over, the  students  look  on  it  as  a  certain  prerogative,  of  which 
many  are  compelled  to  avail  themselves,  who,  especially  in  their 
first  year,  need  more  than  their  remittances.  A  master  tailor 
who  was  much  in  mode  amongst  the  students,  once  attempted 
to  put  an  end  to  this  silently  acknowledged  privilege,  but  it  cost 
him  dear.  This  man  sent  round  a  list  amongst  his  colleagues, 
by  which  every  one  who  signed  his  name  bound  himself  to  give 
no  more  credit  to  any  student.  But  this  list  had  not  circulated 
far,  when  the  students  became  aware  of  the  fact.  They  assem- 
bled themselves  that  evening  at  their  kneip,  armed  with  their 
swords,  proceeded  thence  to  the  house  of  the  tailor,  dashed  all 
the  windows  in,  broke  open  the  doors,  and  rushed  into  the  work- 
shops and  store-rooms  of  the  tailor;  where  they  cut  to  pieces, 
and  bored  through  all  his  pieces  of  cloth  and  ready-made  clothes, 
so  that  they  were  totally  ruined.  The  actors,  indeed,  were 
punished,  and  required  to  pay  all  the  damages,  but  the  tailor  had 


MARCHING  FORTH.  337 

for  ever  lost  the  business  of  the  students,  and  his  fellow-trades- 
men took  warning  from  the  transaction. 

The  academical  laws  have  endeavoured  to  put  a  check  on  this 
facility  of  debt-making,  by  determining  that  all  demands  for 
credited  wines  and  spirituous  liquors,  excepting  the  regular 
choppin  of  wine  or  beer  set  before  his  guests  by  the  landlord  or 
master  of  an  ordinary, — all  demands  of  the  masters  of  coffee 
and  billiard-rooms,  as  such, — all  play  debts,  demands  for  car- 
riage, sledge,  or  horse-hire  for  more  than  one  journey,  which 
may  be  made  on  students,  shall  not  be  recoverable  in  a  court  of 
law;  and  it  is  also  enacted  to  what  extent  credit  for  all  neces- 
saries of  life,  for  books,  and  such  things,  may  be  given,  so  as 
yet  to  leave  a  legal  right  of  recovery.  In  order  to  make  them- 
selves secure  against  a  student,  whom  they  are  afraid  may 
attempt  to  quit  without  discharging  his  debt,  the  creditor  is 
accustomed  to  take  the  usual  and  effectual  way,  that  is,  to  go 
and  lay  an  arrest  on  his  departure-testimonial,  which  will  then 
not  be  handed  to  the  student  by  the  university  office,  till  he  has 
paid  hrs  debts;  by  which  means  it  becomes  very  difficult  to  quit 
the  place  without  a  fair  settlement  with  his  creditors.  One 
way,  however,  remains  for  him.  In  the  university  cities  are 
people  who  lend  money  to  the  students  at  a  high  rate  of  interest. 
These  the  student  pumps,  as  he  calls  it, — and,  as  claims  for 
money  lent  to  students  are  untenable  before  the  court,  these 
people  generally  get  the  loss  when  a  student  runs  off,  as  well  as 
all  those  other  creditors  who  have  not  protested  against  the 
delivery  of  his  testimonial.  This  burning  through,  or  running 
through  the  rags,  as  starting  without  paying  is  called,  was 
formerly  much  more  frequent  than  at  present.  If  it  now  some- 
times happens,  yet  the  cases  are  very  rare  in  which  they  do  not 
afterwards  pay  as  soon  as  they  are  in  circumstances  to  do  it. 
When  these  escapes  were  made,  it  was  generally  at  midnight; 
or  in  this  manner, — the  youth's  companions  accompanied  him  in 
a  Comitat,  or  one  of  their  regular  departure-processions,  but 
another  student  was  set  in  the  first  carriage,  in  the  place  of 
honour,  as  though  it  were  he  who  was  leaving.  When  they 
had,  however,  quitted  the  city,  the  real  departer  took  the  place 


388  THE  AUSZUG;  OR, 

of  honour,  and  the  pretended  one  then  quietly  returned  to  the 
city.  On  such  occasions  was  sung  the  song,  of  course  not  till 
the  immediate  danger  was  past — 

Forth  from  here,  the  Manichseans  watch  us. 

The  Manichceans  are  the  creditors,  so  called  after  the  old 
much  reprobated  sect  of  the  Manichaeans,.who  in  the  third  cen- 
tury held  the  doctrines  of  the  Persian  heretic  Manes. 

Upon  a  wearied  steed,  a  Jena  student  flew, 
In  stumbling  career,  the  fields  and  meadows  through  ; 
And  full  of  dread,  with  which  the  Philistines  imbued  him, 
Still  wildly  looked  behind,  lest  creditors  pursued  him. 

The  Renommist. 

Mr.  Traveller  had  now,  in  Heidelberg,  studied  for  half  a  year 
the  customs  and  general  life  of  the  students.  Gladly  would  he 
yet  longer  have  sojourned  amongst  his  new  friends;  but  he  could 
only  remain  on  the  continent  till  autumn,  and  wished  to  make 
use  of  this  time,  in  acquainting  himself  with  some  others  of  the 
most  celebrated  of  the  universities  of  Germany.  After  long 
delay,  a  day  was  finally  fixed  during  the  Easter  vacation.  His 
way  lay  through  Leipsic  and  Berlin,  and  it  was  agreed  to  set 
out  in  a  hired  carriage  as  far  as  Weinheim,  there,  till  the  arrival 
of  the  post-wagon,  to  celebrate  the  last  farewell.  Towards  five 
o'clock,  on  the  appointed  morning,  Freisleben  and  Hoffmann 
went  to  call  their  friend  Von  Kronen,  and  were  astonished  to 
find  the  long-sleeper  already  up  and  prepared.  "  I'll  tell  you 
how  it  happened,"  said  he  ;  "I  had  given  my  boot-fox  orders  to 
rouse  me  out  of  bed  at  four  o'clock,  be  it  as  it  would.  This 
morning,  while  it  was  yet  quite  dark,  he  rushed  into  my  room 
with  his  lantern,  and  startled  me  out  of  the  sweetest  dreams, 
with  the  cry  of  '  Fire !  fire !'  '  Where  then,  where  T  I  de- 
manded. '  Get  up,'  said  he,  '  in  a  moment,  and  come  with  me.' 
I  sprung  out  of  bed,  threw  on  my  clothes,  again  demanding, 
'  Tell  me  though,  where  is  the  fire  ?'  He  then  quietly  answered, 
'  Here,  you  see  it,  in  my  lantern !'  " 

The  friends  laughed  at  the  ingenuity  of  the  boot-fox,  and  has- 


MARCHING  FORTH.  399 

tened  to  Mr.  Traveller.  They  found  him  already  dressed,  and 
busy  with  his  boot-fox,  in  packing  the  dress-suit  in  which  he  had 
yesterday  paid  his  farewell  visits  to  the  professors.  The  room 
looked  desolate  and  inhospitable ;  and  on  the  walls  on  every  side 
peeped  forth  the  nails,  on  which  had  been  suspended  pipes,  pic- 
tures, and  other  house-gear.  On  the  floor,  packing  paper  lay 
every  where  in  heaps ;  here  and  there  lay  a  pair  of  old  shoes, 
some  old  boxes,  and  the  like;  upon  one  chair  a  trunk,  and  on 
another  a  hat-case.  In  one  corner  of  the  room  lay  a  heap  of 
books  which  were  to  be  sent  direct  to  England.  The  writing- 
desk  was  open,  and  there  lay  the  purse,  the  watch,  and  all  that 
belongs  to  the  pocket,  whilst  a  stick,  and  the  umbrella  in  its  case 
leaned  against  it 

Astonished  at  these  changes,  Freisleben's  spaniel  ran  about 
the  room,  smelling  at  every  thing  in  the  most  particular  manner. 
The  carriage  now  rattled  up ;  the  stout  driver  made  his  appear- 
ance, and  announced  that  all  was  ready.  Hastily  the  maid 
brought  in  the  coffee,  and  hastily  was  it  drunk.  The  driver  and 
the  boot-fox  carried  down  the  luggage ;  Mr.  Traveller  put  on 
his  travelling  coat,  the  friends  lit  their  pipes,  and  all  hastened  to 
the  carriage.  The  maid  was  below  and  wished  a  happy  jour- 
ney ;  the  boot-fox,  to  whom  some  remaining  pipes  and  the  little 
coffee-machine  was  given,  said — "  I  thank  you  many  times ; 
and,  fare  you  well;"  and  as  the  carriage  set  off,  the  old  House- 
Philistine  thrust  his  head  with  his  white  nightcap  out  of  the 
window  above,  and  with  sleepy  voice  cried — "  a  happy  jour- 
ney !"  But  the  maid  remained  standing  at  the  door,  and  looked 
after  the  carriage  till  it  turned  the  next  corner. 

Mr.  Traveller  carried  with  him  from  Heidelberg  only  happy 
recollections,  and  rarely  can  we  say  this  of  a  place ;  therefore, 
as  the  carriage  swept  round  the  turn  of  the  road  at  Neuenheim, 
he  bade  a  last  and  regretful  farewell  to  the  little  city  which, 
stretched  along  the  bank  of  the  Neckar. 

Having  arrived  in  Weinheim,  the  friends  first  took  a  walk  up 
the  lovely  Birkenau  Thai.  They  had  just  returned  thence,  and 
seated  themselves  in  the  inn  to  a  breakfast  &  la  faurchette,  when 

33* 


390  THE  AUSZUG;  OR, 

a  whole  troop  of  youths  arrived  on  foot.  They  were  clad  in 
blue-and-white  frockcoats  and  blouses,  with  belt  round  the  waist. 
wore  for  the  most  part  straw  hats ;  carried  each  a  stout  knap- 
sack on  his  back  ;  in  their  hands  held  short  cudgels  ;  and  had  a 
basket-flask  suspended  by  a  riband  that  passed  over  the  breast- 
They  were  Wurtzburg  students,  who  had  penetrated  by  Wer- 
theim  into  the  Odenwald,  and  had  traversed  that  ancient  and 
forest  land  in  every  direction.  Von  Kronen  and  Freisleben 
found  amongst  them  some  old  acquaintances.  They  gave  them 
a  hearty  welcome ;  and  the  new-comers,  who  were  full  of  life 
and  good  humour,  related  many  of  their  travel  adventures, — 
how  they  came  to  a  village  where  it  was  the  Kirch vveih,  or 
wake;  and  how  the  young  bauers  came  to  hard  cudgels  with 
them,  because  they  had  enticed  from  them  the  loveliest  maidens 
on  the  dancing  ground ;  of  the  Wild  Hunter,  the  Felsenmeere, 
or  Sea  of  Rocks,  and  of  the  solitary  Jager-house,  where  they 
had  been  obliged  to  pass  the  night  on  straw,  as  there  were  no 
beds  to  be  found  for  so  many  guests.  They  felicitated  them- 
selves on  all  the  pleasure  that  they  promised  themselves  in  Hei- 
delberg. The  whole  company  was  very  merry ;  they  did  not 
spare  the  excellent  Hupberger,  and  totally  forgot  that  on  the 
heels  of  this  welcome  must  come  a  speedy  parting.  But  sud- 
denly the  landlord  stepped  in,  and  announced  that  the  Eilwagen 
had  arrived.  The  whole  company  broke  up  hastily,  and  ac- 
companied Mr.  Traveller  to  it.  It  was  high  time  when  they 
arrived  at  it,  and  the  Englishman  had  scarcely  leisure  to  take  a 
hurried  leave  of  his  friends.  He  promised  to  send  them  notice 
of  the  other  universities  that  he  should  visit,  gave  them  another 
hearty  shake  of  the  hand — the  postilion  had  blown  his  bugle, 
and  the  wagon  rolled  on  its  way.  "  Tell  the  English,"  cried 
Freisleben  to  him,  as  he  still  looked  out  of  the  window,  "  that 
the  German  students  are  not  so  bad  as  they  have  been  described 
to  them."  "  Honi  soil  qui  mal  y  pense,"  replied  Mr.  Traveller. 
While  this  passed,  the  other  students  had  raised  the 


MARCHING  FORTH.  391 


SONG  OF  THE  DEPARTING  BURSCH. 

A  Mossy  Bursch  now  forth  I  wend, 
O  God  !  Philister's  house  defend.* 
Yes,  native  home,  I  come  to  thee ; 
Myself  must  now  Philistine  be. 

Farewell,  ye  crooked  streets  and  straight, 
Through  you  no  more  I  walk  elate : 
With  songs  no  more  make  you  astir, 
With  noisy  joy  and  clink  to  spur. 

Ye  Kneips,  why  would  ye  me  delay, 
My  sojourn  here  has  passed  away. 
Oh !  beckon  not  with  your  long  arm, 
Make  not  my  thirsty  heart  thus  warm. 

God  bless  the  College !  How  she  there 
Stands  in  her  stately  grandeur  fair ! 
Ye  twilight  halls,  both  great  and  small, 
Ye  win  me  back  no  more  at  all. 

And  thou  too,  from  thy  gabled  height, 
O  Career !  see'st  in  vain  my  flight, 
For  wretched  lodging,  night  and  day, 
A  Pereat,  greet  thee  thus  for  aye ! 

But  bloom  thou — and,  as  thus  I  go, 
Old  Battle-house,  still  "  Live  thou,  hoch  !" 
Yet  many  a  victor-garland  be, 
Thou  house  of  honour,  won  in  thee ! 

Then  come  I — ah  !  to  Liebchen's  door, — 
Look  out,  dear  girl,  look  out  once  more  ! 
Look  out  with  thy  sweet  eyes  so  clear, 
And  with  thy  dark  and  clustering  hair. 

*  House  of  the  Philistine  in  which  he  had  lived. 


392  THE  AUSZUG ;  OR,  MARCHING  FORTH. 

And  shouldst  thou  e'en  have  me  forgot, 
A  like  reward  I  wish  thee  not. 
Go,  thou  mayst  seek  a  lover  new, 
But  be  he  gay,  like  me,  and  true. 

But  farther,  farther,  now  awaits 
My  course,  stand  wide  ye  ancient  gates! 
Light  is  my  heart,  and  glad  my  track ; 
My  blessing,  city,  waft  I  back ! 

Ye  Brothers !  now,  around  me  press, 
Let  my  heart  feel  not  its  distress. 
On  gallant  steeds  with  gladsome  song, 
Go  ye  with  me  the  way  along. 

In  the  next  Dorf  will  we  alight, 
In  our  last  wine  our  friendship  plight. 
Now,  here  ye  Brothers, — wo's  the  case  ! — 
Our  last  glass  take ! — our  last  embrace ! 

Gustav.  Schwab. 


bed  sA  rfoiih?  ni  onfJfciitrf*!  oil  Ho  ost 


CHAPTER  XXII. 
THE  STUDENT'S  FUNERAL,  ETC. 


And  of  our  brethren,  is  there  one  departed — 
By  pale  Death  summoned  in  his  bloom  ? 

We  weep,  and  wish  him  peace,  all  saddest  hearted ; 
Peace  to  our  brother's  silent  tomb. 

We  weep,  and  wish  that  peace  may  dwell 
In  our  dear  brother's  silent  cell. 


"  WHAT  becomes  then  of  the  student  at  the  last  ?"  the  reader 
will  ask — "  of  him  whom  we  have  to  this  point  followed  in  silent 
observation  through  all  his  ways,  and  along  his  whole  course?" 

If,  as  has  often  been  the  case,  we  were  to  consider  the 
Student-life  as  a  disease,  we  should  say  with  the  Pathologist: — 
"  Every  disease  can,  by  possibility,  have  only  one  of  three 
terminations:  the  first,  in  health;  the  second,  in  some  other 
disease ;  and  the  last,  in  death."  But  we  are  far  from  looking 
upon  it  in  this  light.  Yet  we  can,  regarding  the  Student-life  in 
its  great  outlines  as  a  state  of  health,  assign  it  the  same  issues, 
with  the  exception  that  we  hold  the  Philisterium,  to  use  the 
student's  own  language,  to  be  the  natural  sequence  of  the 
natural  university  life. 

It  is  truly  a  sorrowful  reflection,  that  of  the  numbers  who 
seek  the  university  at  the  same  time,  it  is  only  the  smaller 
portion  of  them  who  reach  that  goal  after  which  they  strive,  or 
should  strive.  Not  that  we  mean  to  say  that  death  snatches 


394  THE  STUDENT'S 

away  so  many  from  the  midst  of  them.  No;  the  mortality 
in  general,  and  especially  in  Heidelberg,  amongst  the  student 
youth,  is  very  small  indeed.  But  what  we  now  have  in  our 
eye  will  be  more  clearly  shown,  if  we  explain  ourselves  on  the 
nature  of  the  object  to  be  attained  by  the  student.  Has  he, 
indeed,  attained  that  object,  when  he  has  piled  up  in  his  head 
laboriously  and  without  order,  a  store  of  things  worthy  to  be 
known  in  his  peculiar  profession  ?  No,  that  is  not  it ;  although 
people  who  are  destitute  of  an  enlightened  grasp  of  mind,  are 
accustomed  to  see  great  perfection  in  the  education  of  a  young 
man  who,  returning  from  a  learned  institution,  is  found  to  have 
gathered  up  all  facts  like  a  schoolboy  with  amazing  diligence, 
so  that  when  any  one  says  A  to  him,  he  can  immediately  say 
B  and  C.  We  believe,  for  our  part,  the  fruit  of  inquiry  to  be 
this :  that  the  young  man  learns  to  perceive  that  the  individual 
study  to  which  he  especially  devotes  himself,  is  only  one  branch 
of  the  great  tree  of  knowledge;  that  no  science,  sundered 
entirely  from  the  rest,  can  proceed  prosperously  to  its  own 
completion;  that  a  science  pursued  alone  and  in  an  isolated 
manner,  cannot  be  properly  called  a  science ;  but  that  all  the 
sciences  stretch  forth  their  sisterly  hands  to  each  other,  and 
form  themselves  into  a  beautiful  circle,  out  of  which  they  will 
not  suffer  themselves  to  be  torn  by  an  unskilful  person. 

He  will  perceive,  that  a  well-grounded  study  of  professional 
science  even,  can  only  base  itself  on  a  philosophical  foundation; 
and  that  he  who,  on  the  contrary,  falls  into  one-sidedness,  must 
become  merely  a  clever  plodder,  or  a  charlatan.  He  will  per- 
ceive that  the  arts  and  sciences  are  as  intimately  connected,  as 
the  capacity  for  the  true,  the  good,  and  the  beautiful  is  united 
in  the  spirit  of  man  with  the  understanding.  But  is  there  one 
who  has  acquired  no  single  perception  of  all  this ;  has  he  only 
crammed  into  his  head  the  dusty  chaff  of  learning ;  has  he,  in 
the  acquisition  of  this  false  learning,  lost  the  taste  for  all  that  is 
good  and  beautiful? — it  had  been  better  that  he  had  never 
entered  on  this  field,  which  for  him  has  had  no  result  but  that 
of  drying  up  his  brain  with  the  heat  of  a  confused  and  unfruitful 
knowledge. 


FUNERAL.  395 

Truly,  there  are  yet  other  results  of  student-life  than  such  as 
these :  namely,  those  of  a  spurious  erudition ;  results  which  for 
the  quondam  student,  are  yet  more  sorrowful,  and  which  fill  the 
heart  of  the  spectator  with  pity  and  abhorrence.  We  mean  the 
consequences  which  habits  of  drinking,  and  of  other  wild  prac- 
tices— such  as  the  miserable  passion  for  play,  draw  after  them. 
It  is  true  that  we  see  many  wretched  creatures  glide  trembling 
about,  who  have  laid  the  first  foundations  of  their  aberrations  at 
their  university.  But  we  see  equally  many,  or  more  such 
miserables,  who  never  visited  such  an  institution:  and  if  we 
find  many  sorrowful  histories  in  the  university  city,  of  the  stu- 
dents who  had  taken  their  own  lives  because  they  had  plunged 
themselves  into  inextricable  debt ;  if  we  hear  many  a  one  at  the 
end  of  his  academical  career  lament  bitterly  over  his  lost  and 
misspent  time ;  we  may  be  seized  with  a  horror  of  such  places 
as  strong,  as  when  we  read  what  Jean  Paul  has  depicted  in 
such  fearful  colours  of  a  similar  unfortunate : — "  And  he  brought 
out  of  the  whole  rich  life  nothing  but  errors,  sins  and  diseases ; 
a  wasted  body  and  a  weary  soul ;  a  breast  full  of  poison  and  an 
age  full  of  remorse.  His  beautiful  youthful  days  now  changed 
themselves  into  spectres,  and  dragged  him  back  to  that  sweet 
morning  where  his  father  had  first  placed  him,  at  the  point  of 
the  diverging  paths  of  life,  the  right  hand  of  which  leads  into 
the  sun-path  of  virtue,  into  a  wide  quiet  land,  full  of  light  and  of 
harvest-fields,  arid  of  angels ;  and  that  of  the  left  conducts  down 
through  the  mole-burrowings  of  crime,  into  a  black  cavern  full 
of  down-dropping  poison,  of  darting  snakes,  and  of  a  damp  and 
sultry  vapour.  Ah !  the  snakes  hang  on  his  bosom,  and  the 
poison  drops  on  his  tongue,  and — he  knew  where  he  was. 
Wild,  and  with  inexpressible  horror  and  anguish,  he  cried  to 
heaven — 4  Give  me  my  youth  again !  O  Father !  place  me 
again  on  the  diverging  path  that  I  may  choose  differently !' " 

I  say,  we,  and  more  especially  the  foreigner,  hearing  and 
seeing  such  things,  should  regard  those  places  with  horror.  But 
let  the  latter  think,  how  many  young  people  here  are  collected 
together ;  and  that  amongst  them  must  of  a  certainty  be  many 
very  thoughtless,  and  no  few  of  them  decidedly  bad  characters. 


396  THE  STUDENT'S 

Let  him  recollect  that  these  numbers,  who  have  just  escaped 
from  the  strict  bondage  of  the  schools,  now  suddenly  stand  free, 
torn  loose  from  all  family  bonds,  to  act  without  restraint,  and 
at  their  own  pleasure.  Let  him  reflect  that  they  are  in  a  place 
where  opportunities  for  every  species  of  extravagance  are  so 
freely  offered ;  where,  if  their  purses  are  exhausted,  so  many 
are  at  hand  ready  to  lend.  Let  him  again  reflect,  that  the 
student  is  exposed  to  all  those  temptations  at  an  age  at  which  the 
passions  rage  often  with  a  fearful  strength ;  at  an  age  which 
causes  him  to  stagger  between  its  extremes.  Let  him,  and  let 
us,  weigh  all  this,  and  then  we  cannot  wonder,  if  many  a  one  in 
this  contest  goes  down ;  if  many  a  one  fails  to  accomplish  the 
aim  of  his  ideal  activity ;  and  we  shall  even  rejoice  that  so 
many  honourably  pass  through  the  ordeal,  and  choose  the  right. 
Goethe's  Wahrheit  und  Dichtung  presents  us  with  a  passage 
which  is  particularly  applicable  to  this  subject. 

"  All  men  of  good  disposition  feel,  in  the  progress  of  their 
education,  that  they  have  a  double  part  to  play  in  the  world — 
an  actual  and  an  ideal  one, — and  in  this  feeling  is  to  be  sought  the 
ground  of  every  thing  that  is  noble.  What  of  the  actual  is 
allotted  to  us,  we  find  only  too  clear;  what  concerns  the  ideal, 
we  can  seldom  come  into  a  distinct  conception  of.  The  man 
may  seek  his  higher  destiny  on  the  earth  or  in  heaven,  in  the 
present  or  in  the  future  ;  but  on  that  account  he  remains  exposed 
to  a  constant  wavering  from  within,  and  to  a  constantly  dis- 
tubing  influence  from  without,  till  he  once  for  all  takes  the 
resolution  to  declare  that  is  the  right  which  is  conformable  to 
his  individual  condition  and  character." 

But  before  we  take  our  leave  of  those  who,  as  we  have  said, 
have  chosen  the  right,  and  now  leave  the  university  to  enter 
upon  a  new  life,  let  us  cast  one  sorrowful  retrospective  glance 
at  him,  whom  death  so  early  has  snatched  away  from  his 
brethren.  And  here  it  rejoices  us  to  behold  how  the  student 
seeks  to  honour  and  preserve  the  memory  of  the  for-ever  de- 
parted. 

When  youth,  in  its  strength,  in  its  beauty  and  freshness,  is 
snatched  away,  and  is  borne  to  the  grave,  who  does  riot  feel 
sorrow  at  heart,  even  if  he  were  a  stranger  to  the  departed  ? 


FUNERAL.  397 

But  in  such  sorrowful  moments  we  feel  a  peculiar  pleasure  in 
mounting  higher  and  higher  into  a  sentiment  of  grief,  till  the  ex- 
hausted spirit  dissolves  itself  in  an  infinitude  of  wo.  In  the  decora- 
tion of  the  funeral  procession  with  every  symbol  of  sorrow,  we 
behold  the  desire  of  friends  to  do  the  greatest  possible  honour  to 
the  deceased  in  the  eyes  of  the  world,  and  to  bring  even  this  to 
participate  in  the  mournful  interest.  If  then  this  be  the  intention 
of  the  last  honours,  no  one  has  perhaps  more  completely  ac- 
complished the  object  than  the  student,  when  he  accompanies 
his  departed  friend  to  his  last  resting-place  by  night,  and  with 
the  light  of  torches. 

In  the  streets  a  curious  multitude  has  gathered  together  to 
behold  the  solemn  train,  and  moves  hither  and  thither.  The 
tolling  of  the  funeral  bell,  announcing  the  setting  forward  of  the 
train,  has  brought  us  also  to  the  window,  and  in  silence  we  look 
forth  into  the  yet  dark  streets.  Busy  fancy  carries  us  quickly 
far  away  to  the  parents  of  the  deceased,  who  now,  in  unspeak- 
able grief,  bewail  perhaps  the  only  son,  him  whom  they  hoped 
soon  again,  after  the  years  of  separation,  to  have  folded  in  their 
arms ;  who,  so  thought  they,  should  now  cheer  and  enliven  their 
old  age.  Then  conducts  it  us  to  his  solitary  death-bed,  where 
in  vain  he  called  on  the  names  of  those  whom  he  loved — of 
those  who  watched  his  childhood;  where  sorrowfully  he  thought 
of  their  pain ;  where,  finally,  he  thanked  the  friends  who,  though 
they  had  been  but  for  a  short  period  united  to  him  in  friendship, 
had,  through  their  sympathy  and  faithful  affectionate  care, 
softened  and  made  consolatory  his  last  hours. 

An  uncertain  and  ruddy  light  now  plays  upon  the  houses  and 
the  waving  folk's-mass,  and  the  night  brings  to  us  the  long- 
drawn  tones  of  the  trumpets,  which,  wailing  with  sorrow,  make 
every  chord  of  our  inner  life  vibrate.  Now  they  call  back  to 
us  the  dear  ones  that  we  have  already  borne  to  the  grave,  and 
the  uncertain  light  of  the  torches  causes  their  forms  to  sweep 
before  our  excited  imaginations  in  a  spirit-train.  Now  these 
thrilling  notes  seem  to  lament  the  transitoriness  of  all  earthly 
things,  and  to  complain  of  the  dreadful  ordinations  of  heaven. 

The  scene  becomes  continually  clearer  and  brighter;  the 

34 


398  THE  STUDENT'S 

individual  torches  and  their  bearers  appear  distinctly,  and  be- 
hold !  the  mass  of  people  separates  before  our  eyes.  To  right 
and  left  they  shrink  back,  as  if  the  multitude  feared  that  ad- 
vancing train  would  yet  snatch  another  out  of  this  moving 
throng,  out  of  the  gladsome  drift  of  life  into  the  chill  of  the 
grave. 

A  numerous  band  of  music  comes  at  the  head  of  the  proces- 
sion, lighted  by  torch-bearers.  Then  follows  the  funeral  car, 
covered  with  black  cloth  and  drawn  by  black  horses.  Upon 
the  car  lies  the  Chore-band,  the  Chore-caps  of  the  deceased, 
and  two  crossed  swords,  all  covered  with  mourning  crape,  and 
surrounded  with  mourning  wreaths.  We  remark  also  particu- 
larly one  smaller  garland ;  it  is  formed  of  white  roses,  and  is, 
so  we  are  told,  from  the  sorrowing  hand  of  some  unknown  fair 
one. 

This  car,  this  coffin,  incloses  the  mortal  remains  of  the 
student  whom  so  lately  we  saw  traversing  these  streets  in  the 
freshness  of  youth,  whose  strong  arm  has  lifted  one  of  these 
swords  in  defence  of  his  honour.  This  city,  the  witness  of  his 
fresh  and  lively  existence,  will  soon  have  forgotten  him. 

Through  life's  course  unto  his  goal 
With  the  tempest's  speed  man  driveth ; 

Then  within  the  true  friend's  soul 
Yet  a  little  while  surviveth. 

Uhland. 

Immediately  before  the  car,  go  two  of  the  beadles  carrying 
fasces  wreathed  with  crape.  On  each  side  and  behind  the 
car,  walk  the  companions  of  the  Chore,  all  in  simple  black 
mourning,  and  with  hats.  Immediately  behind  the  Chore  also 
we  see  two  clergymen  in  black  costume  walking.  This  whole 
group  is  surrounded  by  the  torch-bearers.  Then  come  all  the 
other  students  who  were  acquainted  with  the  deceased,  and 
who  have  added  themselves  to  the  train.  Before  them  goes  the 
leader  of  the  procession,  with  two  attendants  or  marshals.  The 
peculiar  mourning  costume — the  buckskins  and  great  jack-boots 
—the  large  storm  or  two-cocked  hat,  bordered  with  black  and 


FUNERAL.  399 

white  crape,  with  sweeping  feathers — the  great  leathern  gaunt- 
lets— the  sword  trailing  in  its  sheath — the  broad  Chore-riband, 
veiled  in  crape ;  all  these  particulars  point  him  out  His  two 
attendants  are  similarly  attired,  but  without  the  storm-hat.  The 
students  then  follow  two  and  two,  in  divisions  according  to  their 
Chores,  and  others  add  themselves.  In  two  long  lines  they  ad- 
vance slowly  on  each  side  of  the  street,  and  from  time  to  time 
we  observe  an  officer  marching  between  these  lines,  distin- 
guished by  his  cerevis  cap  and  riband,  while  he  carries  in  his 
hand  his  sword,  its  colours  also  veiled  in  crape,  and  its  sheath 
hanging  from  his  left  side.  These  maintain  the  order  of  the 
procession.  Formerly  it  was  customary  for  them  to  be  more 
ceremoniously  attended,  similarly  to  the  leader  of  the  train.  In 
the  same  costume  as  the  leader  of  the  train,  however,  comes  its 
closer,  also  accompanied  by  his  two  attendants ;  and  these  per- 
sonages are  chosen  by  the  Chores  from  amongst  their  tallest 
members,  as  a  matter  of  state. 

Thus  the  procession  moves  on  slowly  through  the  streets,  and 
we  see  a  seriousness  expressed  on  the  countenances  of  most  of 
the  attendants,  which  the  peculiar  paleness  that  the  torchlight 
is  wont  to  give,  greatly  heightens.  While  the  murmur  of 
the  thoughtless  multitude  announces  to  us  the  termination  of 
the  train,  let  us  hasten,  by  a  shorter  cut  than  they,  to  the 
Friedhof,  the  churchyard  where  the  students  are  interred. 
Here  the  train  assembles  itself  around  the  open  grave.  The 
clergyman  steps  into  the  midst  of  the  silent  throng,  and  having 
pronounced  his  address,  closes  it  with  his  last  benediction. 
Then  steps  forward  one  of  the  friends  of  the  deceased,  to  clothe 
in  words  once  more  before  the  assembled  crowd,  his  painful 
feelings.  Yet  once  more  calls  he  to  their  remembrance  the  true 
friendship  of  the  departed,  his  manly  worth,  and  his  genuine 
German  mind.  Yet  once  more  he  dwells  on  all  that  they  have 
lost  in  him.  A  few  stanzas  are  sung,  from  the  beautiful  hymn 
"  From  High  Olympus,"  which  he  had  so  often  joined  them  in. 
And  now  the  coffin  must  descend ;  and  all  press  forward  to 
discharge  to  him  their  last  duty,  by  throwing  each  a  handful  of 
earth  upon  him.  Lastly,  the  lowered  swords  are  crossed  over 


400  THE  STUDENTS 

his  grave,  and  their  clash  is  the  signal  for  the  return  of  the 
train. 

We  perceive  in  many  of  these  funeral  ceremonies  a  similarity 
to  those  with  which  the  deceased  soldier  is  interred ;  and  this  is 
still  more  strikingly  shown  in  the  manner  in  which  they  return 
to  one  of  the  larger  squares,  there  to  burn  the  torches — a  man- 
ner which  we  can  by  no  means  approve. 

No  longer  solemnly  and  silently  tread  back  the  throng ;  but 
instead  of  mourning  airs,  we  hear  the  march,  nay,  even  the 
merry  waltz  and  the  gallopade.  Arrived  in  one  of  the  larger 
squares,  the  train  march  round  it,  and  turning  towards  the 
centre,  at  a  given  signal,  let  their  torches  fly  up  into  the  air, 
and  fall  on  a  heap  in  the  midst.  They  whirl  up,  describing 
many  a  fiery  circle  and  convolution  ere  they  reach  the  flaming 
pile ;  and  now,  while  this  one  animated  and  huge  torch  lights 
up  all  around  with  a  strong  radiance,  and  the  dark  and  giant 
clouds  of  smoke,  which  rolling  up,  mixed  with  the  many-co- 
loured flames,  spread  themselves  to  the  heavens,  the  voices  of 
the  assembled  students  join  in  chorus  the  music-accompanied 
song  of 

Gaudeamus  igitur, 
Juvenes  dum  sumus. 

And  we  see  how  speedily  youth  can  step  from  one  feeling  to 
another.  We  see  also  the  thought — "  Though  an  individual 
falls,  the  great  whole  yet  continues ;  it  was  for  that,  that  he 
laboured,  and  his  exertions  have  not  been  in  vain ;"  we  see  this 
thought  expressed  in — 

It  shall  live !  the  Academical  Freedom  ! 

which  bursts  forth  from  a  thousand  voices,  amid  the  clashing 
together  of  the  swords. 

Finally,  the  torch-pile  having  nearly  consumed  itself  in  its 
splendid  light,  is  extinguished — an  image  of  the  high-aspiring 
youth  who  has  been  borne  to  the  grave ;  and — 


FUNERAL.  401 

As  nothing  had  occurred  now  all  is  silent ; 
The  bells  have  pealed  out,  the  songs  are  ended. 

Uhland. 

We  have  deferred  the  description  of  a  torch-train,  which  is, 
on  solemn  or  festive  occasions,  conducted  in  honour  of  a  pro- 
fessor, etc.,  to  this  chapter ;  and  it  is  only  necessary  here  to 
remark,  that  on  these  occasions,  the  mourning  attributes  and 
contingencies  of  course  being  absent,  the  general  arrangement 
and  proceeding  is  the  same. 

Only  such  students  who  have  distinguished  themselves  in  a 
Chore,  and  are  on  that  account  well  known  to  the  whole  student 
body,  are  buried  with  the  honour  of  a  torch-train.  Others  are 
interred  in  the  day,  and  the  attendants  follow  either  on  foot  or 
in  mourning  coaches.  The  permission  for  a  torch-train  must 
always  be  obtained  from  the  Academical  Senate. 

The  students  in  like  manner  join  themselves  to  the  funeral 
train  of  a  teacher  of  the  university,  with  the  rest  of  the  mem- 
bers of  the  High-school,  as  well  as  other  mourners.  If  it  be 
that  of  a  professor  little  known  or  little  esteemed,  only  those  of 
his  own  faculty  attend ;  but  if  it  be  the  funeral  of  a  man  distin- 
guished for  his  eminent  talents  as  a  teacher,  for  the  excellence 
of  his  character,  and  for  his  services  to  the  university,  they 
scarcely  omit  one  of  their  number. 


34* 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 


THE   COMITAT. 

BUT  we  have  hitherto  only  turned  our  attention  to  the  images 
of  death ;  let  us  now  accompany  the  more  happy  youth  who 
sails  out  of  the  joyful  Burschen  world  into  Philisterium,  on  his 
progress.  During  the  student  period,  the  academician  gene- 
rally far  separated  from  his  connexions,  sometimes  pays  them 
a  visit  in  the  vacation. 

i 

And  when  again  he  visits  us  ! — O  God !  my  wish  is  won  ! 

I  see  him  with  his  black  mustache  the  real  Muses'  son ! 
"  The  Ferien*  now  ended — I  must  away — adieu ! 
And  now  until  I've  finished,  I  come  no  more  to  you." 

If  the  student  always  so  lived  as  during  the  whole  last  year 
or  half-year  of  his  university-life,  we  might  have  been  spared 
the  labour  of  writing  the  tenth  and  other  chapters  of  our 
volume.  There  he  sits  now,  in  his  solitary  little  room.  In- 
stead of  frolicksome  brothers,  the  old  folios  surround  him ;  he 
has  even  forgot  the  Commersing,  and  instead  of  that  he  sips 
his  cup  of  coffee,  in  order  again  to  revive  the  exhausted  spirit 
of  his  life.  His  duelling  wrath  is  directed  against  the  flies  that 
disturb  him  in  his  studies,  and  his  pipe  is  the  only  friend  that 
cheers  his  spirit  in  his  solitude. 

Students  who  have  lived  jovially,  are  accustomed  to  denote 

*  Holidays — the  vacation. 


THE  COMITAT. 


403 


that  they  have  arrived  at  this  melancholy  termination  of  their 
campaign  by  exchanging  the  cap  for  the  Philistine  hat,  and 
their  cronies  are  reasonable  enough  then  to  perceive,  that  no- 
body may  disturb  them  in  these  their  arduous  exertions,  as, 
indeed,  the  Burschen-life  cannot  last  for  ever.  After  these 
glorious  exertions,  the  son  of  the  Muses  plunges  boldly  into  the 
doctoral  examination.  This  is  partly  made  in  writing,  partly 
orally,  and  is  conducted  under  the  superintendence  of  the 
Dean,  who  also  selects  the  questions,  to  which  the  youth  under 
examination,  isolated  in  a  room  of  the  Dean's  house,  gives  his 
answers.  The  examination  is  seldom  closed  under  a  week; 
after  which  he  receives,  as  its  result,  from  the  examining  pro- 
fessors of  the  faculty,  one  of  the  usual  degrees  of  the  university, 
unless  his  acquirements  have  been  so  indifferent,  that  his  evil- 
star,  as  the  students  say,  has  caused  him  to  fall  through. 

The  usual  degrees  are  these  four — "  Summa  cum  laude;" 
"  Praeclara  cum  laude ;"  "  Insigni  cum  laude ;"  "  Magno  cum 
laude;"  (feliciter  evasit,  as  the  student  jocosely  says.)  In  most 
states  .the  doctoral  examination  precedes  the  state  examination,, 
and  the  examinee  acquires  the  right  to  be  admitted  to  the  latter 
when  he  has  passed  his  doctoral  examination,  and  has  written, 
a  dissertation.  In  other  states,  as  in  Baden,  the  reverse  is  the 
fact. 

Is  the  new  doctor  then  dubbed  ? — he  has  sworn  his  oath  on 
the  fasces,  and  he  hastens  to  announce  this  new  distinction  to- 
his  delighted  connexions,  and  to  apprise  them  of  his  speedy 
return  home. 


See !  Father,  see !  a  letter !  his  student  days  are  done, 
A  Doctor  they've  created,  with  high  applause,  thy  son. 
By  the  next  post,  so  writes  he,  to-morrow  e'en  to  dine ! 
He  comes — "Then,  mother,  fetch  tbou  thy  last  flask  of  good  wine.' 

Chamisso. 


When  now  the  quondam  Bursch  returns  home,  in  order  then- 
to  prepare  himself  to  pass  the  State's  examination,  the  portal  of 
Philisterium,  his  university  companions  accompany  him  in  pro- 


404  THE  COMITAT;  OR, 

cession  out  of  the  city.     This  accompaniment  they  call  the 
Comitat. 


What  rings  and  sings  in  the  street  out  there  1 
Open  the  windows,  ye  maids  so  fair. 
'Tis  the  Bursche,  away  he  wendeth — 
The  Comitat  him  attendeth. 

Uhland. 


Such  a  comitat  was,  in  former  times,  more  stately  and 
striking  than  at  present.  Before  rode  in  Kollar  and  Kanonen, 
that  is,  in  buckskins  and  jack-boots,  the  assembled  Chore- 
brothers,  wearing  the  Chore-caps  and  bands,  in  their  right 
hands  their  drawn  swords.  Then  followed  in  a  carriage  with 
four  or  six  horses,  the  senior  in  the  fullest  gala  dress,  and  wear- 
ing the  storm-hat,  and  holding  two  crossed  swords.  Then  fol- 
lowed in  a  carriage  drawn  by  the  same  number  of  horses,  the 
Departing  Bursch.  He  sate  on  the  left  side  in  the  old  Burschen 
dress,  with  the  old  cap  on,  while  on  his  right  hand  sate  two 
Foxes,  dressed  in  the  highest  gala  uniform,  who  were  attending 
on  him  with  the  greatest  assiduity,  performing  every  possible 
service  for  him,  especially  in  lighting  his  pipe  for  him.  On 
each  side  of  the  carriage  was  generally  wont  a  student  also  to 
ride.  The  rest  of  the  students  who  joined  the  procession,  now 
followed  in  two-horse  carriages,  and  the  Pawk-doctor  did  not 
fail  to  appear  in  the  train.  The  train-closer  came  last,  in  the 
style  in  which  we  have  before  described  him,  either  on  horse- 
back with  his  drawn  sword,  or  in  a  carriage  holding  the 
crossed  swords.  So  moved  on  the  picturesque  procession  to 
the  next  place,  where  they  once  more  assembled  themselves  to 
enjoy  the  Burschen-life.  Finally,  the  Mossy  Bursch  must  say 
a  last  farewell  to  the  university  city ;  finally,  must  he  tear  him- 
self from  the  arms  of  his  companions,  and  hasten  towards  his 
home.  He  carries  with  him  out  of  the  city  of  the  Muses  many 
a  delightful  remembrance,  and  brings  to  his  parents  and  rela- 
tions, to  whose  arms  he  returns,  as  the  testimony  of  his  scientific 
acquirements,  the  diploma  of  Doctor. 


ACCOMPANIMENT.  4Q5 


THE  OLD  BURSCH. 


Think'st  thou  thereon  how  in  the  Burschen  season, 
So  light  and  free,  life  unto  thee  did  show! 
Think'st  thou  thereon — how,  and  with  fullest  reason, 
Lovely  it  seemed  to  feel  young  friendship's  glow  1 
Rememb'rest  thou,  what  glad  throngs  thou  didst  see  soon 
As  Brothers  greet  thee — true  in  joy  and  wo! 
When  near  us  lies  nor  foul  deceit  could  won! — 
Speak,  Ancient  House !  oh !  think'st  thou  yet  thereon  ! 

Rememberest  thou,  the  good  old  time  and  tide  then, 
In  German  coat,  long  hair,  and  open  breast ; 
Heft  under  arm,*  the  rapier  by  the  side  then, 
With  zeal  and  courage  we  in  college  pressed, 
*     And  fought  our  way  all  through  the  deep-and-wide  fen, 
Of  the  most  learned  lecturer's  wild-goose  quest 
Then  by  conceit  nor  rank  imposed  upon ! — 
Speak,  Ancient  House,— oh !  think'st  thou  yet  thereon ! 

Thinkest  thou  yet  how  the  Philistines  feared, 

Yet  still  gave  credit  when  the  Bursche  came; 

To  the  Prorector  when  with  plaints  they  fared, 

The  Landsmannschaft  did  straight  the  Bann  proclaim  ! 

Thinkest  thou  yet  how  boldly  then  we  dared 

With  lovely  maids,  who  still,  so  mild,  so  tame — 

How  in  Commers  to  heaven  we  have  gone — 

Speak,  Ancient  House !  oh !  think'st  thou  yet  thereon  ! 

Rememberest  thou  each  tragi-comic  action — 
How  we  did  fight,  since  I  had  thee  touchirt ! 
But  when  the  bleeding  wound  gave  satisfaction, 
How  heartier  than  ever  we  smollirt ! 

*  College  portfolio,  which  the  student  is  continually  carrying  about  under  his 
arm.  With  the  exception  of  the  sword,  this  is  one  of  the  most  striking'  descrip- 
tions of  a  student  of  the  present  day  imaginable. 


406  THE  COMITAT ;  OR,  ACCOMPANIMENT. 

And  how  we  then,  both  true  unto  our  paction, 
In  Career  two  long  moons  each  other  cheered  1 
In  Career  even  clinked  glasses, — cared  for  none  1 
Speak,  Ancient  House !  oh !  think'st  thou  yet  thereon  1 

I  think  thereon !  oh !  ne'er  shall  I  forget  it ! 
The  good,  the  dear,  the  ancient  Burschentide ! 
Oh !  that  'tis  gone  !  that  heaven  such  brief  term  set  it! 
East,  west,  the  brothers  scattered  on  each  side ! 
And  villany  !  since  then  I  oft  have  met  it ! 
Yes,  life  disgusts  me — all  so  cold  and  wide ! 
Courage,  Old  House !  sing  "  Gaudeamus"  on ! 
Canst  "  thou"  it  yet  1     Ah  !  God  !  I  think  thereon ! 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 


SUMMARY  OF  THE  ACTUAL  MERITS  AND  DEMERITS  OF  STUDENT  LIFE. 

Prove  all  things ;  and  hold  fast  that  which  is  good. 

THE  life  and  habits  of  the  student  are  closed  with  the  last 
chapter.  We  have  accompanied  him  from  the  time  when  he 
advanced  from  the  school  into  the  free  atmosphere  of  the 
university,  till  that  in  which,  turning  his  back  on  the  joyful 
Burschen-world,  he  sailed  forth  into  the  Philisterium.  The 
English  reader  has  attended  us  on  a  progress  through  a  strange 
country,  which  lay  so  near  him,  and  yet  was  so  enigmatical  to 
him ;  and  we  hope  that  his  trouble  has  not  proved  irksome  to 
him.  It  is  true  that  the  Student-life  has  its  rough  and  eccentric 
side ;  and  this,  as  falling  most  prominently  under  the  eye,  has 
not  escaped  the  foreigner.  On  the  other  hand,  many  have 
endeavoured,  in  their  writings,  to  represent  these  in  the  most 
exaggerated  manner.  But  the  Student-life  has  also  a  beautiful 
and  a  poetical  side,  and  this  many  do  not  think  worthy  of  their 
time  and  attention,  while  others  have  no  sentiment  for  it,  and 
therefore  no  perception  of  it.  When,  moreover,  in  English 
periodicals  are  exhibited  such  caricatures  and  calumnious  por- 
traitures as  genuine  delineations  of  what  would  be,  truly,  very 
singular  proceedings  and  persons;  if  the  reader  has  carried 
away  with  him  these  as  true,  because  they  have  been  written 
in  Germany  and  with  an  air  of  authority,  we  need  not  wonder 


408  MERITS  AND  DEMERITS 

that  he  turns  from  these  monstrous  and  bizarre  pictures  with 
shuddering  and  contempt,  and  if  he  laugh  at  the  folly  and 
reprobate  the  immorality  of  the  German  youth.  But  after  we 
have  sketched  the  true  features  of  German  Student-life,  we 
leave  it  to  the  reader  to  make  his  reflections  upon  it,  and  to 
extract  the  grains  of  wheat  from  the  chafF. 

There  remain  for  us,  however,  still  several  questions  which 
the  more  particularly  demand  answers,  because  hereupon  the 
most  singular  notions  prevail.  What  gains  the  student  by  this 
academical  life?  What  does  he  carry  with  him  out  of  it? 
and  what  does  he  leave  behind  in  it?  and  what  becomes  of  him 
next? 

When  we  have  decided  upon  the  advantage  which  the  student 
derives  from  the  academical  life,  we  shall  then  feel  ourselves 
prompted  to  say  a  few  words  upon  the  tendency  of  certain  in- 
stitutions of  the  German  universities ;  on  the  scientific  and  moral 
spirit  which  prevails  amongst  the  students.  We  shall  further 
proceed  a  little  to  explain  some  singular-seeming  customs  and 
practices,  and,  so  far  as  these  are  concerned,  as  we  always 
speak  particularly  of  Heidelberg,  to  cast  some  glances  of  com- 
parison upon  other  German  and  foreign  universities.  In  such 
a  parallel  it  is  also  interesting  to  observe  how  the  universities, 
as  institutions  of  education,  operate  thus  essentially  on  the  poli- 
tical relations  of  states,  and  on  the  other  hand,  how  they  are 
determined  in  their  developement  by  these.  These  proposed 
points  are  difficult ;  and  their  thorough  discussion  would  lead 
us  too  far.  We  must  therefore  content  ourselves  with  distinc- 
tive indications. 

Justly  says  Thiersch — "  The  universities  are  a  vastly  inter- 
twined and  entangled  whole,  at  which  people  and  ages  have 
laboured,  in  order  to  bring  it  to  its  present  extension." 

The  first  and  only  true  object  of  the  academician  is,  and  for 
ever  remains,  the  study  of  science.  This  constitutes  the  central 
point,  which  all  intently  seek,  and  where  all  find  themselves, 
without  regard  to  external  circumstances.  Knowledge,  and 
the  strife  after  it,  are  sacred  to  the  student ;  and  these  are  the 
anchor,  which,  dropped  into  the  heart  of  every  one,  has  lashed 


OF  STUDENT  LIFE. 


409 


to  it  that  internal  spiritual  bond  which  embraces  the  whole 
class.  The  single  aim  of  the  academician  is  the  free  pursuit  of 
knowledge. 

It  is  true  that  the  majority  of  those  who  seek  the  university, 
have  the  object,  at  a  later  period,  of  entering  on  state  offices ; 
and  the  acquisition  of  knowledge  made  at  the  university,  places 
them  in  a  condition  to  be  able  properly  to  discharge  the  duties 
of  those  offices,  which  are  the  means  of  their  future  existence. 
But  the  later  practical  application  of  this  knowledge,  which  is 
so  far  the  medium  of  his  profession,  comes  before  the  eye  of 
the  student  in  the  background.  In  the  society  of  young  people 
who  are  in  the  pursuit  of  knowledge,  in  the  intercourse  with 
teachers  whose  object  is  the  diffusion  of  the  same,  and  sur- 
rounded by  external  institutions  which  all  bear  upon  the  ad- 
vancement and  the  facilitation  of  study,  he  remains  far  from 
the  thought  that  knowledge  is  to  be  regarded  as  a  milch-cow, 
which  will  furnish  him  hereafter  with  butter.  The  unfolding 
of  his  intellectual  capacity  in  every  direction ;  the  following 
out  one  or  the  other  in  particular,  appears  to  him  the  business 
of  life  in  these  years.  It  is  exactly  this  which  essentially  dis- 
tinguishes the  corporation  of  students  above  every  thing  else ; — 
of  which  the  student  is  so  proud.  He  despises  the  Philistine, 
who,  in  all  circumstances  of  his  life,  is  only  thinking  of  his 
petty  gains. 

It  is  grounded  psychologically  on  this  feeling  of  individual 
worth  as  a  disciple  of  wisdom,  that  the  Burschen  honour 
springs  up,  and  holds  every  student  equally  high  and  equally 
dear.  As  a  corporation,  one  stands  for  all,  and  all  for  one ; 
and  without  drawing  a  moral  death  upon  it,  this  honour  cannot 
suffer  itself  to  be  wounded.  Study  is  pursued  at  the  German 
universities  with  zeal  and  radicality.  Proofs  of  this,  are  the 
great  numbers  of  young  men  who  every  year  pass  through  the 
State's-examinations,  and  testify  their  ability  in  all  the  offices 
of  their  country :  proofs  are,  the  writers  of  Germany,  who  owe 
their  accomplishment  to  these  institutions :  proofs,  finally,  are, 
the  preponderating  number  of  well-educated  men  compared 

35 


410  MERITS  AND  DEMERITS 

with  those  of  other  countries, who  draw  their  support  from  the 
academical  foundations.  But  we  must  not  go  so  far.  Let  any 
one  compare  the  German  student,  whose  acquirements  are 
weighed  by  a  competent  judge,  with  the  student  of  any  foreign 
university. 

Manifold  indeed  have  been  the  complaints  of  the  laziness  of 
the  first  period  of  the  academical  life;  and  we  can  only  repeat 
what  we  have  said  on  this  subject  in  an  earlier  portion  of  our 
volume.  There  is  an  abrupt  transition  from  the  studies  of  the 
Gymnasium  to  those  of  the  University ;  and  the  newling  at  the 
university  wastes  and  wears  away  much  time,  especially  in  the 
first  months,  and  indeed  during  the  whole  first  semester,  before 
he  has  accustomed  himself  to  the  free  condition,  and  the  free  and 
fresh  atmosphere  of  the  university.  But  is  this  of  such  mighty 
importance?  It  is  the  transition  into  a  state  of  greater  self- 
dependence  which  demands  this  sacrifice  ;  and  he  only  who  has 
no  conception  of  the  strengthening  and  fortifying  influence  of 
university  life, — he  who  does  not  perceive  with  what  higher 
advantage  this  material  loss  is  counterbalanced,  can  alone  break 
out  into  lamentations  on  this  head.  He  who  is  accustomed  to 
chase  youth  out  of  one  pen  into  another,  and  to  begrudge  every 
free  breath,  every  lighter  moment,  every  refreshment  of  over- 
passing Muse — who  trembles  and  shakes  lest  by  such  trivial 
circumstances  they  should  have  lost  both  body  and  soul;  will 
indeed  judge  otherwise,  but  deserves,  in  fact,  to  be  sent  back 
into  the  school  of  literary  and  pedagogic  necessity,  out  of  which 
he  was  expelled  by  some  mischance.  That  portion  of  the  youth 
however,  who  have  arrived  on  the  threshold  of  the  university 
honest  and  well-disposed — and  this  portion  is  so  predominant 
that  the  remainder  appears  in  comparison  insignificant — this 
large  and  elect  portion  of  the  better  endowed,  soon  pass  through 
the  first  rude  shock  of  difficulty  and  surprise,  and  through  the 
mere  pleasure-rambling  in  the  garden  of  the  Muses.  The  stu- 
dent zealously  busied  to  develope  his  intellectual  constitution, 
healthily  and  in  all  its  members,  will  find  himself  in  the  strongest 
manner  supported  by  the  regulations  of  the  German  university ; 
and  of  these  we  will  speak  anon. 


OF  STUDENT  LIFE. 


411 


On  the  other  hand,  the  free  intercourse  with  his  cotempora- 
ries  operates  most  favourably.  When  the  youth  enters  the  uni- 
versity, he  steps  at  once  into  a  corporation  composed  of  the 
most  opposite  materials.  Every  student  brings  with  him  the 
peculiarities  of  his  Fatherland,  in  manners  and  speech;  and  how 
manifold  is  the  variety  !  To  say  nothing  of  the  foreigners  who 
frequent  our  different  universities,  what  a  difference  is  there  yet 
between  the  different  races  which  speak  the  German  tongue. 
What  gradations  from  the  cold,  ceremonial  North  German,  who 
clings  fast  to  etiquette,  and  with  difficulty  attaches  himself  to 
others,  to  the  good-natured  South  German,  who,  knowing  little 
of  outward  forms,  readily  finds  a  friend  to  whom  he  can  ally 
himself.  Every  foreigner  retains  the  characteristics  of  his  own 
land,  and  often  takes  a  pride  in  exhibiting  them,  by  which  means 
he  becomes  a  person  detached  from  the  mass.  We  find  the 
strongest  antagonisms  of  this  kind;  and  it  might  make  one 
doubtful  of  the  reciprocating  influence  of  this  cause,  had  we  not 
found  by  experience  that  the  result  was  a  favourable  one.  The 
intellectual  bond  of  knowledge  here  embraces  the  sons  of  all 
nations ;  and  thus  these  apparently  heterogeneous  elements  can 
only  operate  auspiciously,  since  the  advantage  is  not  to  be  over- 
looked which  the  close  and  mutual  contact  affords,  of  learning 
to  know  foreign  manners  and  customs,  and  for  each  to  recog- 
nise his  own  in  the  true  light. 

And  here  we  must  again  call  attention  to  the  fact,  of  the 
essential  difference  between  the  result  of  academical  life,  and 
that  of  burger  life.  As  to  the  moral  side  of  the  question,  there 
have  not  been  wanting  people  who  have  laboured  to  represent 
the  university  as  a  gulf  which  swallows  up  the  flower  of  the 
youth,  as  a  pool  out  of  which  only  a  few  are  happy  enough  to 
escape  without  ruin  of  soul  and  body.  These  are  ridiculous 
and  malicious  exaggerations.  No  one  will  attempt  to  deny  the 
dangers  of  university  life,  the  temptations  to  deviations  from 
propriety;  and  according  to  time  and  situation  must  every  uni- 
versity, in  a  greater  or  less  degree,  be  exposed  to  these ;  but 
every  one  who  is  not  blinded  by  excess  of  prejudice  or  enmity, 
knows  that,  besides  those  who  give  way  to  temptation,  by  far 


412  MERITS  AND  DEMERITS 

the  greater  number  return  to  their  friends  from  the  High-school, 
as  sound  in  body  and  mind  as  they  came  to  it. 

The  hope  would  be  idle,  to  chase  evil  quite  away ;  such  a 
hope  is  opposed  to  the  total  experience  of  all  people  and  times, 
to  the  nature  of  advancing  manhood,  and  to  that  degree  of  free- 
dom, which  must  be  allowed  to  youth  in  the  years  of  its  grow- 
ing developement  for  the  prosperous  completion  of  this  develope- 
ment  itself,  and  which  every  where,  though  it  may  be  under 
different  forms,  will  be  afforded.  There  is  no  law,  no  precau- 
tion, which  can  possibly  preserve  the  youngling  on  the  higher 
steps  of  his  career  if  he  does  not  watch  over  himself;  and  one 
cannot  forget  the  just  observation  of  the  old  English  vicar,  that 
the  virtue  that  needs  continual  watching,  is  not  worth  the  cost 
of  a  sentinel.  But  this  is  the  common  lot  of  all  manly  youth  ; 
and  we  may  boldly  assert,  that  aberrations  amongst  the  other 
classes — amongst  the  younger  ranks  of  the  military,  of  the  mer- 
cantile, and  of  other  departments  of  trade,  are  not  less,  but 
probably  more  extensive ;  yes,  it  is  satisfactory  to  know  that  in 
these  respects  the  academical  life  is  in  a  progressive  state  of 
steady  improvement. 

But  if  we  inquire  further  what  are  those  things  which  most 
particularly  strike  the  foreigner  in  the  student ;  those  things 
which  are  most  ridiculous,  and  disapproved;  we  find  that, 
briefly,  they  are  the  following, — the  singular  dress  of  the  stu- 
dent, the  strong  smoking,  and  his  habits  of  beer-drinking  and 
duelling. 

That  the  student  in  early  times,  more  than  at  present,  adopted 
a  singular  costume,  arose  from  two  causes,  either  out  of  con- 
venience or  vanity.  In  both  cases,  the  matter  is  a  very  inno- 
cent one,  and  the  academical  boards  did  wisely  to  permit  him 
these  fancies,  so  far  as  they  were  not  the  signs  of  an  interdicted 
verbindung.  The  life  at  the  university,  as  we  have  had  now 
abundant  occasion  to  observe,  is  a  peculiar  one.  When  this 
extends  itself  so  far  that  a  separate  court  of  justice  is  allowed 
to  the  students,  is  it  at  all  to  be  wondered  at,  that  the  Student  who 
feels  himself  in  every  respect  so  distinct  from  the  Philistine, 
should  also  seek  to  express  this  distinction  by  his  costume?  He 


OF  STUDENT  LIFE.  413 

only  does  this  so  long  as  he  belongs  to  the  High-school,  and 
with  the  conclusion  of  this  period,  ceases  also  naturally,  the 
occasion  for  this  peculiarity.  Considerations  of  convenance 
weigh  little  with  the  students  amongst  themselves, — they  weigh 
little  with  them  towards  those  who  surround  them,  as  it  is  by 
no  means  an  object  of  the  student  to  seek  advantage  from  those 
moving  around  him,  nor  to  render  himself  particularly  accept- 
able to  them.  Therefore  in  small  cities  these  peculiarities  of 
dress,  chosen  according  to  every  individual  fancy,  strike  the  eye 
more  ;  while  in  larger  cities  the  student,  playing  a  more  subor- 
dinate part,  unites  himself  more  to  the  general  mass  of  society, 
and  loses  himself  more  in  family  circles.  There  he  will  sur- 
render himself  to  the  existing  order  and  convenances  of  society, 
since,  so  soon  as  he  enters  the  salon,  he  conducts  himself  strictly 
by  the  rules  of  etiquette.  But  he  is  no  slave  of  fashion.  This 
is  repugnant  to  his  freedom  of  thought ;  and  he  believes  himself 
to  have  as  good  a  right  to  choose  his  own  dress,  as  the  lawgiver 
of  fashion  has  from  the  capital  of  France  to  prescribe  what  shall 
be  held  good  ton  in  external  appearance.  He  is  by  no  means 
so  tyrannical  as  that  personage,  since  he  desires  from  no  com- 
rade that  he  shall  herein  follow  his  example ;  since  he  leaves 
herein  to  every  one  perfect  freedom,  and  allows  the  native  stu- 
dent to  observe  the  stricter  ceremonial  of  his  father-city. 

And  is  his,  really  as  it  often  is  a  most  fantastic  costume,  more 
singular  or  more  contrary  to  nature,  than  the  fashionable  attire 
in  which  many  show  themselves  in  the  capitals  of  the  whole 
world,  and  above  all,  in  which  they  present  themselves  to  the 
eyes  of  the  public  in  the  fashionable  watering-places  ?  Is  he 
indeed  the  only  one  who  herein  overleaps  the  bounds  of  etiquette  ? 
They  who  have  seen  the  grotesque  paraphernalia  in  which  the 
foreigners  from  beyond  the  Channel  suffer  themselves  to  appear 
in  Germany,  will  certainly  not  assert  this.  And  these  do  this 
in  a  foreign  country ;  the  student  only  in  his  German  Father- 
land. Are  there  so  many  sects  too,  who  distinguish  themselves 
by  their  peculiar  dress,  and  shall  this  be  so  sharply  objected  to 
in  the  student? 

The  smoking  of  tobacco  is  an  accusation  which  the  student 

35* 


414  MERITS  AND  DEMERITS 

shares  in  common  with  the  other  classes  of  the  community,  and 
which  only  looks  the  more  striking  in  him.  We  will  not  defend 
this  practice,  on  which  so  much  has  already  been  said,  nor  that 
of  beer-drinking;  but  we  must  again  take  leave  to  observe,  that 
in  all  this  there  is  no  compulsion.  The  reader  has  probably 
alarmed  himself  by  perusing  the  Beer-code,  which  we  have 
given  at  the  end  of  this  volume.  It  is  well  known  that  in  older 
times  much  more  was  drunken  at  the  university,  and  that  this 
pernicious  custom,  especially  in  some  of  the  German  universi- 
ties, prevailed  to  a  most  lamentable  degree.  In  those  times  many 
of  these  beer-laws  might  be  of  great  advantage,  insomuch  that 
they  restrained  from  greater  excesses.  As  they  now  exist,  no 
student  is  subjected  to  them,  who  does  not  voluntarily  submit 
himself  to  them,  by  associating  himself  with  the  companies  that 
assemble  at  the  kneip.  And  even  here  it  is  at  his  perfect  option, 
at  any  moment,  to  declare  that  he  will  drink  no  more,  only  he 
cannot  break  this  declaration  without  paying  the  penalty. 

We  are  as  little  disposed  to  defend  the  duel.  A  reconciliation 
of  disputes  between  contenders,  by  the  exertion  of  and  through 
the  means  of  reason,  either  in  the  disputants  themselves,  or 
through  their  friends ;  or  if  this  were  found  impracticable,  through 
the  establishment  of  a  court  of  honour  amongst  the  students,  or 
through  an  appeal,  in  serious  cases,  to  the  academical  court, 
would  certainly  be  a  more  civilized  proceeding.  We  may, 
indeed,  hope  that  this  will  be  accomplished  in  time,  and  the 
more  so,  because  the  number  of  duels  at  the  universities,  com- 
pared with  former  times,  is  already  so  much  diminished,  and  as 
the  voices  of  many  students  are  now  raised  against  this  prac- 
tice. Yet  we  must  not  judge  the  students  too  hardly  on  account 
of  the  duel,  but  ought  to  take  into  the  account  the  following 
considerations  in  mitigation  of  our  opinion. 

No  one  is  compelled  to  fight,  who  in  the  commencement  de- 
clares that  it  is  contrary  to  his  principles.  Let  it  be  recollected, 
that  in  the  university  cities,  more  than  elsewhere,  young  people 
are  crowded  together,  and  compelled  briskly  to  push  and  jostle 
each  other,  as  it  were,  in  their  course.  Let  it  be  remembered, 
that  though  we  may  pronounce  of  the  bulk  of  them,  that  they 


OF  STUDENT  LIFE.  415 

are  well-educated  youths,  yet  at  the  same  time,  in  comparison 
with  the  circumstances  of  other  young  people,  it  is  undeniable 
that  far  more  frequent  and  greater  occasions  for  antagonist 
attrition  occur  amongst  them — in  part,  no  doubt,  on  account  of 
the  greater  pecuniary  means  in  their  possession,  and  still  more 
on  account  of  the  unavoidable  necessity  of  social  life  amongst 
themselves,  especially  in  the  lesser  university  cities,  in  which 
they  cannot  mingle  with  the  family  circles. 

The  foreign  universities,  where  the  duel  does  not  exist,  cannot 
be  brought  in  evidence  on  this  head,  because  they  want  other 
peculiarities  of  the  German  universities,  which  are  of  apparently 
great  advantage.  The  constitution  of  the  English  universities, 
in  particular,  is  totally  different  to  ours,  and  more  resembles  that 
of  our  seminaries,  where  the  students  enjoy  no  such  freedom. 
It  must  also  be  remembered  that  the  regulations  of  our  univer- 
sities make  them  accessible  to  those  without  property,  and  who 
spring  out  of  the  lower  classes,  while  in  England  only  the  rich 
young  men,  and  those  out  of  the  higher  classes  of  society,  can 
possijfly  exist,  with  a  few  exceptions,  at  the  great  universities  of 
England.  The  advantage  of  the  German  universities  in  this 
respect  no  one  can  deny,  if  he  only  turns  his  regard  on  the  great 
number  of  the  most  distinguished  of  the  learned  men  of  Germany, 
whose  talents  have,  through  this  very  accessibility  of  the  univer- 
sities, been  made  beneficial  to  the  public. 

On  the  other  hand,  one  cannot  expect  from  the  student  who 
has  sprung  from  one  of  the  lower  grades  of  society,  the  same 
degree  of  refinement  as  graces  those  of  a  higher  stand.  Thus, 
no  wonder,  if  through  these  who  have  been  accustomed  to  move 
in  a  ruder  sphere  of  society,  occasions  for  contentions  are  more 
readily  created.  It  must  be  remembered  that  the  student,  be  he 
who  he  may,  regards  himself  on  an  equality  with  his  fellow- 
student  ;  but  on  that  account  so  much  the  more  jealously  watches 
over  his  own  honour,  and  on  that  account  also  more  readily 
believes  himself  insulted.  Hence  the  customary  formula  of  a 
challenge,  "  Stupid  youth !"  which  inevitably  draws  a  duel  after 
it,  is  characteristic,  as  it  clearly  indicates  that  the  feeling  of 
burschen-honour  is  grounded  on  the  dedication  to  knowledge, 


416  MERITS  AND  DEMERITS 

whose  disciples  can  naturally  in  no  way  be  so  insulted  as  by  the 
epithet  "  stupid,"  which  implies  that  he  is  totally  unfit  for  a  priest 
of  Minerva. 

Let  these  facile  occasions  of  strife  be  borne  in  mind,  and  then 
let  persons  of  practical  experience  be  asked  how  many  young 
people  of  other  grades  are  wounded  and  even  killed  in  scuffles 
and  cudgellings,  they  will  then  be  induced  to  judge  more 
leniently  of  the  duel  amongst  students,  and  rather  pardon  the 
extremes  of  a  feeling  of  honour,  than  that  the  chance  should 
possibly  arise  of  a  provoked  student  becoming  in  effect  the 
homicide  of  his  fellows. 

Thus  we  may  regard  the  duel,  under  its  regular  form,  as  a 
sort  of  discipline  which  the  students  exercise  amongst  them- 
selves, and  thus  banish  every  ruder  and  not  seldom  dangerous 
explosion  of  passion.  We  say  the  duel  in  its  regular  form, 
and  thereupon  recall  to  the  reader's  memory  the  following  par- 
ticulars. According  to  the  regulations  for  the  arrangement  of 
duels  in  Heidelberg,  every  challenge  must  be  withdrawn  when 
the  opponent  declares  that  he  gave  the  insult  in  a  state  of 
intoxication.  Every  duel  shall,  before  it  is  undertaken,  be 
made  known  to  the  Senior-Convention,  and  by  it  an  accom- 
modation shall  be  attempted. 

When  these  regulations  are  violated,  this  does  not  arise  from 
the  regulations  themselves,  but  from  the  partisans  who  have 
neglected  to  demand  from  the  seniors  the  execution  of  their 
own  laws.  The  completion  of  the  duel,  according  to  the 
Comment  regulations,  by  sword  stroke  and  not  by  lunging,  and 
with  defensive  costume,  which  covers  almost  every  exposed 
part  of  the  body,  renders  any  dangerous  consequences  almost 
impossible.  There  is  no  instance,  from  time  immemorial,  of 
any  such  regularly  and  formally  completed  duel  in  Heidelberg, 
being  attended  with  fatal  consequences,  or  one  which  rendered 
life  thereafter  a  burden,  as  is  only  too  frequently  the  case  at 
universities  where  the  duel  in  every  form  is  punished  more 
severely  than  as  a  breach  of  discipline,  and  where,  on  that 
account,  more  dangerous  but  more  easily  concealed  weapons 
are  resorted  to. 


OF  STUDENT  LIFE.  417 

By  these  observations  we  would  by  no  means  defend  duels, 
but  merely,  in  some  degree,  excuse  them.  Laws  against  such 
customs,  which  are  fast  rooted  in  old  prejudices,  are  seldom 
very  effectual.  As  little  as  the  fist-law  could  by  power  and  at 
once  be  extirpated,  so  little,  according  to  our  opinion,  can  this 
be  accomplished  with  the  duel.  It  is  true  that  there  lies  in  the 
hands  of  the  German  governments,  by  means  of  the  State's- 
examination,  a  power  of  punishing  and  suppressing  this  practice 
which  foreign  realms  do  not  possess.  They  might,  it  may  be 
said,  pass  a  law,  that  whoever  had  been  engaged  in  a  duel, 
should  forfeit  his  right  to  the  State's-examination,  and  thereby 
state  service.  But  it  must  be  answered,  that  this  would  be  in 
the  highest  degree  severe  for  a  small  offence,  which  in  itselft  he 
regular  duel  really  is ;  thus,  to  punish  a  young  man  in  such  a 
manner  that  this  one  folly  should  put  an  end  irrevocably  to  the 
whole  of  his  life's  prospects  and  career.  Further,  it  has  been 
seen,  that  exactly  at  those  times  when  the  duel  of  every  kind 
was  the  most  strictly  interdicted  and  repressed,  the  most 
dangerous  duels  by  lunge  and  shots  became  more  than  ever 
frequent.  And  yet  these  draw  a  punishment  after  them  which 
has  often  made  a  young  man  miserable  for  the  remainder  of 
his  life.  So  long  as  it  is  not  the  general  opinion  amongst  the 
students,  that  the  duel  cannot  be  held  as  satisfaction,  so  long 
will  they,  in  case  of  actual  insult,  not  be  deterred  by  the  most 
stringent  punishments  from  resorting  to  it.  Till  then,  would  it 
not  be  the  most  reasonable  course  to  visit  the  most  dangerous 
kinds  of  duelling  with  the  most  severe  punishments  of  the  law, 
but  to  pursue  the  ordinary  and  less  dangerous  not  so  harshly  ? 
If  this  alone  remains  to  the  student,  he  will  by  degrees  convince 
himself  of  the  ridiculousness  of  such  a  sham-fighting,  and  the 
duel  will,  as  it  is  already  become  less  "piquant,  cease  altogether. 
It  will  be  the  duty  of  the  teacher  to  promulgate  better  views 
upon  the  nature  of  duelling  by  speech  and  by  writing,  and  thus 
to  conduct  their  pupils  out  of  the  spirit  of  it.  This  the  greater 
number  of  them  have  even  taken  suitable  opportunities  of  doing. 
As  an  example  we  quote  a  part  of  the  speech  which  the  Ober- 


418  MERITS  AND  DEMERITS 

medizinalrath  and  Professor  Dr.  J.  N.  Ringseis  delivered  on 
the  3d  of  December,  1828,  in  the  hall  of  the  High-school  at 
Munich,  at  a  time  when  the  duel  there  had  become  exceedingly 
predominant  and  reckless. 

"  It  is  a  sign  of  a  noble  mind  to  regard  true  honour  as  the 
highest  good,  as  higher  than  life  itself.  He  only  who  does  not 
fear  death,  really  possesses  life.  We  will  all  strive  after  higher 
honour;  and  every  one  of  us  must  be  prepared  at  any  hour  to 
sacrifice  our  life  for  it.  It  is  a  duty  through  noble  manners  to 
honour  ourselves;  he  only  who  maintains  a  nobility  of  conduct 
himself,  can  respect  the  manners  of  another.  It  is  honourable 
to  belong  to  a  brave  union ;  more  mightily  works  the  spirit  of 
every  one  in  union.  It  is  honourable  to  love  your  native  place, 
be  it  on  the  Isar,  the  Danube,  the  Rhine,  or  the  Main,  since 
what  German  territory  has  not  a  host  of  glorious  recollections? 
It  is  an  honourable,  proud  feeling  to  be  able  to  wield  the  sword 
skilfully,  as  if  it  were  a  member  of  our  body.  But  he  who 
honours  himself,  his  society,  his  native  home,  honours  this 
feeling  in  another ;  he  who  recognises  the  sacred  destiny  of  the 
sword  to  be  the  protection  of  the  highest  good  of  mankind,  dis- 
honours it  not  by  unholy  aims.  The  officers  of  our  army 
covered  themselves  with  evergreen  laurel, — how  rare  is  the 
duel  amongst  them !  The  hero  youth  of  the  universities  of 
North  Germany  performed  miracles  of  bravery  in  the  memo- 
rable Liberation  war;  and  the  duel  was,  amongst  those  who 
returned,  almost  without  example.  Rare  indeed  is  it  in  the 
circles  of  the  highest  society ;  to  the  noblest  nations  of  antiquity, 
the  Greeks  and  Romans,  it  was  wholly  unknown. 

"  I  repeat  not  the  thousand-times-reiterated  arguments  against 
the  irrationality  of  the  duel,  since  I  know  well  that  they  have 
fought,  even  excellent  men,  although  convinced  of  the  perversion 
of  the  practice — have  fought,  bowing  to  the  lordship  of  opinion, 
spite  of  the  certainty  of  losing  office,  property,  freedom,  and 
life  itself.  Truly  there  belonged  to  such  conduct  a  kind  of 
obstinate  bravery;  but  greater,  nobler,  more  worthy  of  the 
sight  of  heaven  is  the  courage  which  tames  itself;  the  courage 


OF  STUDENT  LIFE.  419 

of  him,  who  although  fearless,  although  practical  in  arms, 
although  secure  from  discovery  and  punishment,  yet  fights  not ; 
the  hero-courage  of  a  free  obedience,  which  our  poet  sings : — 

Courage  has  the  Mameluke — obedience  is  the  Christian  law. 

"  How  is  it,  friends,  that  we  feel  ourselves  too  effeminate  to 
contend  for  this  loftiest  laurel  of  courage  and  obedience  ?  Cer- 
tainly the  nobler,  the  more  honourable,  in  every  accomplish- 
ment the  more  advanced,  a  man,  a  union,  a  people, — there  for 
ever  is  and  was  the  more  rarely  to  be  found  the  duel.  What, 
then,  must  be  thought  of  men  to  whom  the  duel  is  become  a 
chief  business  of  life  ?  of  youths  called  hereafter  to  become  the 
leaders  and  the  lights  of  your  people  ?  How,  ye  jurists !  ye 
who  hereafter  will  nicely  weigh  in  the  balance  the  right — will 
sharply  reprove  insolent  opposition  to  the  law — and  would 
rather  suffer  shame  and  death  than  perpetrate  the  smallest 
injustice, — will  you  open  the  way  through  audacious  contempt 
of  the  kws  ? 

"  Medical  men !  called  to  wound  that  they  may  heal,  not  to 
destroy,  will  you  commit  that  double  crime  against  the  state? 

"  And  could  a  philosopher — a  theologist,  so  grossly  deride  the 
Divine  Teacher's  word — 'Do  good  to  those  who  hate  you; 
bless  those  who  curse  you;  pray  for  those  who  despitefully 
use  you  1' 

"  And,  noble  friends !  can  true  honour  prevail,  where  drinking, 
quarrelling,  and  insult  give  the  shameful  occasions  for  the  duel? 
True  honour !  where  he  who  refuses  to  fight  a  duel  is  exposed 
in  rude  verses  in  public  places,  and  is  even  maltreated  with 
vulgar  violence  ?  True  honour !  where  in  aggravation  of  disobe- 
dience, dishonourable  lies  are  also  added?  I  glow  with  shame 
to  the  very  depths  of  my  mind,  that  any  amongst  us,  however 
few  in  number,  could  be  so  mean  as  to  deny  the  deed,  could 
harden  themselves  shamelessly  to  make  the  denial  a  point  of 
honour  !  Oh  !  hideous  spectre  of  honour,  without  the  courage 
of  truth  and  of  obedience!  The  courage  of  truth  and  obedience 
is  the  highest  honour;  and  he  who  binds  himself  to  a  union 


420  MERITS  AND  DEMERITS 

0 

pledged  to  lies  and  to  disobedience,  he  has  from  the  beginning 
no  conception  of  honour ;  unfit  for  a  priest,  unfit  for  a  judge, 
unfit  for  a  physician  ! 

"  O  my  friends,  I  see  you  burn  with  a  noble  indignation  ;  you 
are  all  on  fire  for  honour,  for  the  highest  honour  of  manhood. 
Up  then  !  there  is  a  vast,  a  boundless  field  of  laurels  for  you,  for 
us  all,  to  contend  for.  Shame  to  ignorance !  shame  to  immo- 
rality !  shame  to  the  rude  might  of  arms,  without  knowledge, 
without  morals,  without  obedience !  shame  to  obedience  to- 
wards unions  in  things  which  God  and  the  king  forbid !  In 
knowledge,  in  morals,  in  obedience,  in  glowing  love  to  King 
and  Fatherland — in  them  let  every  individual  endeavour  to 
outstrip  another,  every  union  the  other,  our  university  all 
others.  I  call  you,  my  friends,  to  such  a  noble  contest ;  and 
to  it  call  you  your  honour,  the  fame  of  our  university,  the 
fame  of  the  Fatherland,  and  of  our  King !" 

These  abuses,  which  we  have  just  now  alluded  to,  that  is,  the 
passion  for  the  duel,  and  the  strong  drinking,  are  the  causes 
which  make  the  Verbindungs,  which  are  known  under  the  name 
of  Landsmannschafts  and  Chores,  odious.  In  fact,  if  one  puts 
these  dark  adjuncts  out  of  mind,  then  the  student  life,  and  in 
particular  the  Chore  life,  has  only  a  cheerful  aspect.  The  close 
incorporation  of  students  into  unions,  which  have  regular  meet- 
ings in  some  particular  place,  from  which  every  uninvited  dis- 
turber of  order  is  banished ;  meetings  for  social  entertainment 
and  exhilaration ;  for  practice  in  bodily  exercises,  as  in  fencing 
and  gymnastics ;  these  could  only  serve  to  a  more  speedy  ac- 
complishment of  active  and  intellectual  men,  and  would  be 
certainly  approved  of  by  all  reasonable  persons.  These  dark 
adjuncts  have  brought  the  Chore  life  into  great  unpopularity, 
and  have  induced  many  governments  to  prohibit  the  Chores 
themselves,  as  the  vehicles  which  contain  and  maintain  these 
pernicious  practices.  Yet  it  must  be  remembered  that  practices 
so  deeply  rooted  are  not  to  be  expelled  by  force,  but  only  through 
the  advancing  march  of  humane  knowledge ;  and  it  must  be  fur- 
ther acknowledged,  that  the  Chores  by  the  maintainance  of 
order  in  these  things  themselves,  only  prevent  a  greater  outburst 


OF  STUDENT  LIFE.  421 

of  the  wild  Burschen-spirit.  The  governments  have  made  use 
of  the  Chores  frequently  in  order  to  bring  the  student  youth  to  a 
quicker  adoption  of  resolutions  which  would  be  for  the  good  of 
the  university,  or  of  the  state ;  and  this  continues  to  be  the  case 
in  those  states  where  they  are  yet  allowed. 

Let  us  imagine  the  Chores  purified  from  their  dross ;  they 
would  then  represent  unions  which  had  their  own  constitutions, 
and  where  those  in  reality  who  distinguished  themselves  most 
in  outer  life,  would  take  the  first  places.  Let  it  not  be  believed 
that  in  such  a  case  the  proper  acknowledgment  would  be  de- 
nied to  him  who,  unincumbered  with  social  life,  devoted  himself 
exclusively  to  knowledge.  This  happens  by  no  means  to  those 
who  belong  to  the  present  Chores  under  their  present  circum- 
stances. That  the  student  jealously  watches  over  his  honour ; 
that  he  easily  imagines  this  honour  affected,  grounds  itself  on 
the  equal  standing  which  he  gives  to  every  one  of  his  fellow- 
members.  He  makes  this  sufficiently  obvious  himself,  in  that 
he  will  not  permit  the  usual  duel  between  the  Student  and  the 
Philistine.  We  cannot  blame  this  strict  vigilance  over  the 
Burschen  honour ;  but  the  means  resorted  to,  to  restore  wounded 
honour,  are  truly  foolish,  and  worthy  of  punishment.  If  we 
imagine  the  duel  superseded  by  the  sentence  of  a  court  of 
honour,  which  condemned  the  guilty  to  beg  pardon,  or  some 
other  proportionate  punishment,  there  would  be  nothing  further 
to  be  desired. 

But  the  reasons  which  the  government  assigned  for  the  pro- 
scription of  the  Burschenschaft  were  totally  different.  They 
were  determined  to  this  prohibition  by  this  principle ;  that  the 
student  who  is  at  the  High-school  in  order  further  to  develope 
his  intellectual  faculties,  and  to  arrive  at  a  scientific  and  poli- 
tical freedom  in  his  views — that  he,  the  scholar,  is  not  called  to 
step  forth  here  already  as  a  teacher  of  the  people ;  that  he  is  not 
called  upon  to  overturn  the  constitutions  of  states,  before  he  has 
yet  learned  properly  to  analyse  their  nice  and  elaborate  con- 
struction ;  since  it  is  a  true  assertion,  that  it  is  much  more  easy 
to  pull  down  than  to  build  up ;  and  it  was  a  piece  of  presump- 
tion in  the  youth  to  attempt  to  hurl  down  by  violence  a  fabric, 

36 


422  MERITS  AND  DEMERITS 

which  the  best  and  wisest  of  the  people  had  with  their  best 
strength  erected. 

In  Heidelberg,  since  the  Marching-Forth  of  1828,  the  Bursch- 
enschaft,  as  its  especial  promoter,  was  anew  strictly  proscribed, 
but  the  Landsmannschafts  were  sanctioned ;  and  from  each 
new-springing  Verbindung  the  word  of  honour  was  taken,  by 
the  academical  board,  that  it  was  no  Burschenschaft.  After 
some  years,  however,  these  Landsmannschafts  were  forbidden 
also. 

So  far  as  the  Burschenschaft  was  a  union  which,  on  account 
of  its  ideal  object,  claimed  prerogatives  beyond  the  other  Ver- 
bindungs,  in  so  far  by  that  prohibition  is  its  return  to  the  High- 
school  made  impossible.  But  so  far  as  the  Burschenschaft 
spirit  is  a  real  constitutional  spirit,  we  may  in  Heidelberg  assert 
with  pride,  that  it  never  was  abandoned  by  the  young  burgers 
of  our  High-school,  and  that  all  our  present  existing  Verbin- 
dungs  are  animated  by  this  same  noble  feeling.  This  constitu- 
tional mind  has  already  displayed  itself  prominently  on  so  many 
occasions,  that  it  is  not  necessary  to  bring  evidences  of  it.  We 
may  simply  allude  in  confirmation,  to  the  interest  which  the 
students  have  always  manifested  in  the  proceedings  of  the 
Landtag,  and  to  the  testimonies  of  acknowledgment  which 
they  have  always  given  to  those  teachers  who  have  there  ex- 
erted themselves  for  the  good  of  the  people,  and  for  the  mainte- 
nance of  constitutional  freedom.  We  may  notice  the  sympathy 
with  the  unhappy  state  of  Poland,  which  the  students  publicly, 
by  word  and  deed,  expressed  to  the  Polish  officers  who  passed 
through  the  city.  Hence,  because  these  unions  do  not  assume 
as  their  object  the  preparation  for  the  realization  of  some  cer- 
tain idea,  but  merely  a  pleasant  social  life  during  the  university 
years,  it  does  not  follow  that  the  hearts  of  these  young  do  not 
beat  warmly  for  knowledge,  for  right  and  freedom,  and  that  no 
individual  amongst  them  pursues  this  noble  aim,  nor  does  it 
follow  that  these  unions  set  themselves  in  opposition  to  such 
more  ideal  aims  as  may  already  be  begun  there  to  be  pursued. 

An  esteemed  German  philologist  says — "  Most  of  our  Ger- 
man universities  bear  the  humane  character  of  fine  manners 


OF  STUDENT  LIFE.  423 

and  chivalric  bearing.  They  array  themselves  in  the  clear, 
radiating  colours  of  the  dreams  of  youthful  pleasure;  and  is 
there  conspicuous,  indeed,  in  the  academic  life  itself,  the  foam 
of  a  bubbling  fermentation,  this  clears  itself  with  time,  and 
becomes  in  the  end  a  noble  and  strong  spirit."  A  finer  pane- 
gyric we  cannot  pronounce;  but  we  may  corroborate  it,  when 
we  add  to  the  observations  already  made,  how  much  the  spirit 
of  the  young  man  is  stimulated  at  the  university  to  activity; 
and  with  what  noble  energy,  which  so  eminently  distinguishes 
the  student  class,  he  employs  this  activity  in  all  directions.  As 
there  is  no  rule  without  its  exception,  so  there  is,  indeed,  such 
here ;  but  we  must  not  lay  the  measuring-wand  of  a  general 
judgment  on  these  few  extravagances,  though  in  the  full  elu- 
cidation of  the  subject  we  may  not  pass  them  entirely  without 
observation. 

Abroad,  people  have  had  such  singular  notions  of  the  German 
students,  that  they  could  not  for  their  lives  conceive  what  could 
be  made,  in  after-life,  of  such  wild  fellows;  and  have  been 
amazingly  astonished  to  hear,  that  they  afterwards  became  like 
other  reasonable  people,  and  administered  all  sorts  of  offices  of 
the  state  conscientiously,  and  with  the  most  exemplary  and 
calm  discretion.  We  recollect  a  passage  in  the  humorous 
work  of  Mr.  Hood,  "  Up  the  Rhine ;"  at  which  certainly  many 
a  German  student  has  already  heartily  laughed,  as  he  has  read 
it  there  as  something  new — that  "  it  is  notorious  that  these 
Burschen  come  in,  according  to  the  proverb,  as  Lions  and  go  out 
as  Lambs, — some  of  the  wildest  of  them  settling  down  in  life  as 
very  civil  civilians,  sedate  burgomasters,  and  the  like." 

Let  it  never  be  forgotten  that  the  students  represent  a  peculiar 
class,  of  which  they  who  compose  it,  however,  are  but  tempo- 
rary members.  Shall  the  student  then  carry  over  with  him 
into  the  Philisterium,  his  singular  attire,  and  his  Chore-colours'? 
It  would  seem  as  if  foreigners  had  quite  supposed  this  must  be 
so.  But  we  would  ask  them  whether  it  ever  occurs  that  a 
member  of  parliament  makes  a  speech  in  his  place  in  the 
House,  arrayed  in  the  student-gown  which  he  wore  at  Cam- 
bridge ?  Shall  the  student,  indeed,  carry  with  him  his  sword, 


424  MERITS  AND  DEMERITS 

that  with  eccentric  courage  he  may  defend  the  Burschen  ho- 
nour, when  he  has  himself  long  become  a  Philistine  1  Shall  the 
quondam  student  forsake  wife  and  children,  in  order  to  go  and 
vindicate  the  injured  majesty  of  studentdom,  in  order  to  join 
himself  to  the  Marching-Forth  ?  Could  such  things  be,  then 
must  the  German  academies  truly  be  regarded  as  so  many 
great  lunatic  asylums,  and  nothing  better  or  wiser  could  be 
done  than  to  extirpate  them,  root  and  branch. 

A  few  words  yet  remain  to  be  said  on  the  actual  advantage 
derived  by  the  German  student  from  this  life,  and  carried 
forward  with  him  out  of  the  green  Burschendom,  into  the 
seriousness  of  his  later  vocation,  and  on  what  his  after-vocation 
may  be. 

The  great  business  of  the  student,  as  already  stated,  is  the 
pursuit  of  science ;  and  it  is  less  the  mass  of  knowledge  here 
harvested,  which  brings  him  future  advantage,  than  the  capa- 
city which  he  acquires,  let  him  move  in  later  life  in  what  circle 
he  may,  of  comprehending  and  acting  in  a  pure  scientific  and 
philosophical  spirit,  upon  every  matter  which  may  be  thrown 
into  his  path.  The  student-life  has  many  favourable  influences 
on  the  character  of  a  young  man.  Though  the  Bursch,  as  it 
regards  his  social  position,  naturally  allies  himself  most  closely 
to  his  landsmen,  yet  he  feels  himself  compelled  by  those  causes 
already  pointed  out,  to  exert  a  general  tolerance  towards  his 
brethren,  which  though  often  abandoned  and  again  submitted 
to,  yet  inoculates  him  with  a  greater  degree  of  sufferance, 
which  on  his  departure  from  the  academical,  for  a  more  gene- 
ral life,  unfolds  itself  more  freely,  and  extends  itself  to  all  social 
relations.  The  student,  indeed,  as  such,  knows  little  tolerance 
towards  non-students ;  yet  the  patience  which  he  learns  to  exert 
towards  his  fellow-students,  is  not  without  its  consequence,  and 
when  he  steps  out  of  his  confined  sphere,  it  then  clothes  itself  in 
another  outward  form,  and  takes  a  general  direction.  The 
student  maintains  strictly  and  perseveringly  his  own  views, 
though  consequently,  often  erroneous  ones;  but  this  serves  in 
after-life,  to  lay  the  ground-work  of  greater  steadfastness  of 
character.  This  firmness  continues  with  him  to  his  grave, 


OF  STUDENT  LIFE.  435 

though  his  views  and  principles  modify  and  purify  themselves, 
as  his  growing  intelligence  directs  him  more  and  more  into  the 
track  of  truth.  And  as  the  student  stands  upon  his  honour,  for 
which  full  of  the  highest  enthusiasm  he  glows,  and  joyfully 
offers  up  property  and  life,  so  stands  he  in  the  bonds  of  truth 
and  friendship.  Such  bond  of  friendship  is  to  him  sacred  as  his 
own  life,  and  it  is  to  him  continually  a  guiding-star  through  the 
gloomy  paths  of  existence.  It  is  to  him  the  noblest  treasure 
which  he  carries  with  him  into  the  tumult  of  life,  and  he  con- 
tinues to  it  inviolably  faithful. 

In  addition  to  this,  the  student  has  learned  to  arrive  at  the 
poetical  side  of  life.  He  has  continually  sought  and  enjoyed 
pleasure  and  satisfaction;  and  let  no  man  imagine  that  these 
foretell  only  a  future  trifler.  No,  he  is  thereby  invited  to  enliven 
the  stupidity  of  every-day  life,  and  to  throw  new  interests 
around  the  path  of  existence.  That,  however,  every  character, 
according  to  its  own  individuality,  more  or  less  favourably 
developes  itself,  and  that  these  influences  of  student-life  here 
described  differ  in  degree  in  different  individuals,  needs  no 
stating.  We  seek  only  to  show  general  causes,  and  these  are 
certain.  Scientific  merit,  self-confidence,  consciousness  of  being 
able  to  thank  his  own  individual  strength  for  his  existence,  the 
honour  of  men,  and  the  truth  of  friends, — can  more  beautiful  or 
delightful  results  than  these  be  found  1  Even  on  the  outward 
appearance  of  the  quondam  Bursch,  the  student-life  has  a 
favourable  influence.  The  moment  that  the  young  man  has 
entered  the  Philisterium  he  adopts  the  existing  convenances,  so 
far  as  appear-  conducive  to  his  purpose,  but  only  so  far  as  that 
he  can  yet  maintain  that  independence  of  fashion  which  he  has 
already  asserted.  His  outward  manner  of  life  continues  free 
and  unrestrained ;  and  this,  united  to  the  practice  of  making  a 
greater  tour  after  his  examination  has  passed,  as  well  with 
scientific  as  with  other  objects,  gives  to  the  former  academician 
a  higher  bearing,  an  acquired  tact,  which  adheres  to  him  through 
existence,  and  again  pronounce  in  their  consequences  the  great- 
est advantages  of  student-life. 

That  the  Burschen-life,  through  the  greater  freedom  which  it 

36* 


426  MERITS  AND  DEMERITS 

enjoys,  may  also  bring  great  disadvantages  to  him  who  has 
abused  it,  and  which  may  poison  later  life ;  who  will  attempt  to 
deny?  We  have  already  pointed  out  the  rocks  and  breakers 
of  this  ocean  of  transition  life.  The  Burschenschaft  agitations 
of  a  former  period  also  plunged  many  into  misfortune ;  but  this 
danger  is  now  in  a  great  measure  past,  and  for  the  last  time 
gleamed  up  a  political  tendency  for  a  few  moments  in  the  Ver- 
bindung,  like  glimmering  ignis-fatui,  in  the  years  1830-32. 

When  the  student  now  quits  the  university,  where  he  has  left 
behind  him  the  follies  of  youth,  and  bearing  with  him  a  greater 
or  less  amount  of  intellectual  acquisition,  he  enters  immediately 
on  the  service  of  the  state.  After  his  State's-examination  it  is 
very  customary  to  make  a  tour,  before  the  young  man  for  ever 
knits  himself  to  one  abode.  Besides  those  who  in  practical 
state's-service,  or  as  teachers  in  the  schools  and  universities, 
work  themselves  forward,  step  by  step,  with  more  or  less  speed, 
according  to  the  degree  of  their  ability  and  of  their  diligence,  or 
in  proportion  as  they  are  favoured  by  fortune, — others  exert 
themselves  in  the  wide  field  of  daily  literature,  zealously  labour- 
ing to  win  the  fame  of  authors  and  of  poets.  But  follow  which- 
ever path  he  may,  let  fortune  smile  on  him  or  not — let  him 
crown  himself  with  laurels,  or  strive  for  the  wreath  of  glory  in 
vain — never  will  he  who  has  been  a  genuine  Bursch,  become  a 
Philistine ;  that  is,  in  that  sense  in  which  the  student  understands 
it.  The  words  of  the  celebrated  Arndt  express  most  lucidly  this 
meaning  of  the  word  Philistine.  "  A  Philistine  is  a  lazy,  much- 
speaking,  more-asking,  nothing-daring  man;  such  a  one  who 
makes  the  small  great,  and  the  great  small,  because  in  the  great 
he  feels  his  littleness  and  his  insignificance.  Great  passions, 
great  enjoyments,  great  dangers,  great  virtues, — all  these  the 
Philistine  styles  nonsense  and  frenzy.  He  will  rather  have  life 
in  the  pocket  edition  than  in  the  folio,  so  that  it  can  but  be 
carried  through  with  the  very  least  possible  acting,  thinking,  and 
daring.  Rest,  and  rest  again,  and  at  any  rate ;  a  state  of  lazi- 
ness, that  he  loves,  that  he  desires,  that  he  preaches  up,  and  for 
that  he  cries  to  heaven  and  earth,  if  there  is  any  chance  of  his 
being  disturbed  in  it." 


OF  STUDENT  LIFE.  437 

Into  these  faults  he  will  never  fall,  who  has  once  imbibed  the 
principles  of  a  German  university ;  and  will  only  in  so  far  be- 
long to  the  Philistines,  as  the  student  in  a  wider  sense  terms 
every  one  a  Philistine  who  no  longer  belongs  to  the  Burschen. 

What  we  have  now  been  saying  may  convince  us  how  bene- 
ficial is  the  influence  of  the  student-life  on  that  which  follows. 
Nobler  principles  of  action  awake  in  the  breast  of  the  academi- 
cian, and  are  nourished ;  that  here  and  there  starts  up  amongst 
them  something  perverse,  is  not  denied ;  but  the  kernel  is  good,  it 
germinates,  it  grows  into  a  tree,  and  bears  excellent  fruit,  which 
the  quondam  Bursch  and  his  cotemporaries  are  destined  to 
enjoy. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 


A  REVIEW  OP  THE  POLITICAL  ASPECT  OF  STUDENT  LIFE. 

IF  we  have  hitherto  regarded  the  life  and  pursuits  of  the 
university  in  an  isolated  manner,  and  entirely  on  its  own  ac- 
count, yet  it  can  by  no  means  have  escaped  the  reader  that  this 
life  does  not  stand  so  completely  sundered  from  the  general 
stream  of  events,  but  that  the  mind  and  spirit  of  the  university 
life  is  determined  by  the  spirit  of  the  times,  and  that,  on  the 
other  hand,  it  operates  again  powerfully  on  the  developement  of 
the  institutions  and  condition  of  the  times.  This  must  have  be- 
come sufficiently  clear  to  us  in  noticing  the  earlier  Burschen- 
schaft,  and  to  increase  and  complete  that  conviction,  we  have 
only  to  take  a  hasty  review  of  what  has  been  now  written,  and 
to  add  a  few  other  remarks. 

The  universities  reflect  the  spirit  of  the  times :  its  progress, 
its  weakness,  its  strength,  are  all  imaged  forth  again  in  the 
science  of  the  age ;  and  the  schools  are  therefore  exposed  to  the 
changes  and  revolutions  of  the  times,  but  are  not  unconditionally 
subjected  to  them.  They  have  strengthened  that  spirit  of  the 
time  and  of  the  people  in  their  exhaustion,  by  their  inquiries  and 
results ;  and  not  less  through  teaching  and  the  invisible  power 
with  which  they  have  elevated  and  ennobled  the  minds  of  the 
youth.  They  have  enriched  the  sciences,  and  adorned  public 
affairs  with  beauty  and  wisdom.  They  have  in  part  laid  the 
foundations  of  the  intellectual  greatness  and  high  accomplish- 
ment of  Germany ;  in  part  strengthened  and  guaranteed  them  ; 


POLITICAL  ASPECT  OF  STUDENT  LIFE.  429 

and  are  the  pillars  of  the  fairest  and  most  unrivalled  glory 
which  our  country  in  the  most  recent  times,  and  before  the 
eyes  of  all  Europe,  has  achieved.  The  university  is  the  central 
point  and  the  heart  of  science.  From  all  sides  stream  to  it  the 
spirits  which  are  athirst  for  knowledge ;  and  as  they  are  en- 
nobled, again  from  that  central  point  disperse  themselves  through 
all  the  members  of  Germany,  diffusing  through  them  fresh  nou- 
rishment and  a  splendid  growth.  The  teachers  and  accomplish- 
ers  of  the  people  go  forth  out  of  them.  The  battles  of  the 
church  were  fought  out  in  the  university;  and  if,  as  it  happened 
in  the  contest  of  the  Reformation,  the  faith  of  the  Princess  was 
forced  upon  the  High-school  by  the  hand  of  power,  yet  the 
teachers  and  scholars  of  the  university  seldom  bowed  before  it. 
The  teachers  abandoned  a  place,  which  would  lay  their  con- 
sciences in  chains,  and  sacrificing  office  and  income,  sought  an 
asylum  in  foreign  lands.  They  often  found  a  refuge  in  another 
university  which  held  the  same  faith  as  themselves;  they  carried 
with  them  the  troop  of  their  scholars,  who,  as  their  faithful  body- 
guard,* attended  them ;  and  there  fought  anew  and  victoriously 
for  the  success  of  the  good  cause. 

The  Professors  of  the  High-schools  have  pre-eminently  co- 
operated in  working  out  the  constitution  of  the  German  States, 
and  many  excellent  men  amongst  them  have  contended  for  the 
freedom  of  the  people,  and  have  boldly  stood  forward  against 
every  usurpation  of  despotism.  We  need  only  give  one  example, 
and  that  of  the  most  recent  date ;  we  need  only  call  to  the 
reader's  mind  the  Seven  Professors  of  Gottengen,  who  opposed 
themselves  to  the  arbitrary  violation  of  the  constitution  of  the 
state  with  all  their  power,  and  on  that  account  in  the  most  un- 
principled manner  were  ejected  from  their  professorships.  This 
scandalous,  and  in  Germany  till  then,  unheard-of  example  of 
despotism,  notoriously  threatened  the  destruction  of  the  Georgia- 
Augusta,  and  for  a  long  time  annihilated  its  prosperity;  but 
other  states,  by  their  reception  and  establishment  of  these  profes- 
sors, have  shown  that  they  approved  of  their  proceeding,  and 
the  exiled  professors  were  every  where  received  by  the  German 
students  with  the  testimonies  of  the  deepest  veneration.  If  the 


430  POLITICAL  ASPECT 

Bundestag  did  not  condemn  the  King  of  Hanover  as  guilty,  yet 
the  judgments  are  well  known,  which  many  German  universi- 
ties at  its  desire  gave  in,  and  in  which  they  expressed  in  the 
most  strong  and  unqualified  language  their  sense  of  the  injustice 
of  the  deed.  We  call  to  mind  that  the  tyrant  called  on  the 
King  of  Wirtemberg  to  punish  the  audacity  of  the  professors  of 
Tubingen  who  had  sent  in  such  a  judgment,  according  to  the 
enormity  of  their  crime, — an  audacity  which  in  Hanover  would 
be  expiated  in  chains ;  but  the  noble  monarch  answered  that  in 
his  land  the  freedom  of  teaching  was  a  sacred  possession,  which 
he  would  never  infringe ;  but,  for  the  rest,  he  observed  sarcasti- 
cally, he  left  it  to  the  High  Court  of  Justice  at  Celle  to  pro- 
nounce sentence  on  the  guilt  or  innocence  of  his  faithful  pro- 
fessors. 

If  the  universities  in  such  a  manner  grapple  mightily  with  the 
circumstances  of  the  times,  so  are  they,  on  the  other  hand,  influ- 
enced by  them.  They  receive  from  the  times  the  impressions, 
the  tendency,  the  frivolity  as  well  as  the  earnestness,  and  dis- 
tinguish themselves  only  from  the  other  circles  of  society  in 
this,  that  in  them  the  good  and  the  evil  of  the  times  more 
rapidly  unfold  themselves  and  take  a  determinate  form.  The 
moral  effeminacy  of  the  nation  at  the  time  of  the  French  domi- 
nation, operated  on  the  ignoble  natures  amongst  the  youth, 
scattering  and  dissolving;  while  it  spurred  on  the  nobler  to 
those  Verbindungs  out  of  which,  at  a  later  period,  went  forth 
hosts  to  do  battle  for  the  liberation  of  the  nation  from  a  foreign 
yoke.  After  the  rising  of  the  nation  and  its  consequence — 
victory  over  the  foe, — as  all  hearts  felt  themselves  elevated,  all 
exertions  felt  themselves  refined,  the  new  form  of  the  time  stood 
forth  in  the  yet  pure  aims  of  the  Burschenschaft,  which  at  the 
time  when  the  Tugend-bund  extended  itself,  constituted,  on  its 
first  appearance,  a  continuation  of  the  brotherhood-in-arms,  the 
WafFengenossenschaft,  which  with  the  student  youth  returning 
from  the  war,  had  this  object, — to  purify  academical  life  from 
its  dross,  and  to  present  it  as  an  image  of  the  union  and  enno- 
bling of  all  the  German  races.  Hereupon  followed  the  period  of 
undeceiving,  of  counteraction,  of  degeneracy,  which  run  into  so 


OF  STUDENT  LIFE.  431 

unrestrained  a  career,  that  to  the  wise  and  prudent,  the  beauti- 
ful time  of  enthusiasm,  appeared  as  the  dream  and  frenzy  of 
good-natured  fools.  As  the  youth  would  not  abandon  the 
objects  of  their  endeavours,  whether  rational  or  chimerical, 
but,  on  the  contrary,  held  them  equally  fast  as  something  great 
and  noble,  a  portion  of  them  fell  a  secure  prey  to  the  unquiet, 
the  revolutionists  and  political  intriguers,  who  abused  their  inex- 
perience, and  poisoned  their  noble  endeavours  by  infusing  a 
resistance  to  public  order.  The  teachers  of  the  universities 
were  blamed  by  many,  as  though  they  were  chargeable  with 
being  concerned  in  these  aberrations  of  the  youth,  or,  at  least, 
were  so  far  culpable  that  they  had  not  prevented  them. 

So  far  as  a  direct  participation  of  the  teachers  in  these 
political  disturbances  is  concerned,  we  may  be  well  assured 
that,  if  only  a  single  professor  had  at  any  time  been  an  accom- 
plice, or  indeed  only  a  concealer  and  protector,  of  the  guilty, 
the  exact,  the  strict,  and  in  many  places  for  years  protracted 
inquiries,  would  to  a  certainty  have  come  upon  the  trace  of 
their  crimes,  and  the  guilty  would  have  been  conducted  from 
the  professorial  chair  to  the  dungeon.  There  remains  only  the 
question,  whether  they,  though  taking  no  part  in  the  views  and 
proceedings  of  the  young  people,  were  yet  aware  of  them,  and 
took  no  steps  to  prevent  them.  But  were  the  youths  who  fell 
under  the  power  of  the  law,  the  only  ones  who  trod  the  same 
dangerous  path  ?  Were  there  not  amongst  the  others,  some, 
perhaps  even  as  many,  who,  through  the  warnings  and  exhorta- 
tions, or  through  the  moral  influence  of  distinguished  teachers ; 
and,  in  short,  through  the  better  spirit  which  every  well  con- 
ducted university  developes  amongst  the  nobler  part  of  the 
youth,  were  preserved  from  that  mischief?  But,  so  far  as  the 
actually  implicated  students  were  concerned,  the  professors 
were  in  the  same  case  with  the  Boards,  expressly  organized  for 
the  watching  over  the  youth,  and  the  matter  was  quite  unknown 
to  them,  since  the  youths  who  were  mutually  pledged  to  that 
object,  concealed  it  from  the  eyes  of  the  professors  just  as 
scrupulously  as  from  those  of  the  university  Commission  of 
inquiry,  and  the  Boards  of  police.  But  to  the  liberation  of  Ger- 


432  POLITICAL  ASPECT 

many  from  the  dominion  of  Napoleon,  the  High-schools  con- 
tributed no  little.  Joyfully  their  scholars  gave  themselves  up  to 
death,  and  scholars  and  teachers  roused  the  nations  to  bravery 
through  inspiriting  songs ;  of  which  the  names  of  Arndt,  Schen- 
kendorf,  Korner,  Hauff,  Follen,  Voss,  Stolberg,  Scharnhorst, 
and  Haupt,  stand  as  glorious  testimonies. 

Yet  once  more  the  youth  wandered  from  their  laudable  endea- 
vours in  the  years  1830-33,  and  one  portion  of  them  although  a 
small  one,  suffered  themselves  to  become  the  work-tools  of  poli- 
tical fanaticism.  The  revolution  in  Poland,  and  the  unhappy 
fate  of  that  country,  had  made  a  vivid  impression  on  their  minds. 
Demagogic  agitators  again  were  busy  in  secret;  private  Ver- 
bindungs  were  formed  ;  the  catastrophe  of  the  French  Revolu- 
tion of  July  occurred,  and  flung  the  firebrand  into  the  powder 
magazine.  People  thought  they  must  follow  the  example  of 
France,  and  began  loudly,  with  writing  and  by  speech,  to  attack 
the  governments  and  to  abuse  the  princes.  But  the  youth  who 
attached  themselves  to  these  agitators,  were  no  longer  the 
old  Burschenschaft,  who  steadfast  to  their  one  idea, — ".One 
Fatherland,  which  should  declare  itself  the  worthy  antagonist 
of  the  arch-enemy  France ;  one  church,  and  freedom,"  fought 
out  this  with  word  and  deed :  no,  the  modern  Burschenschaft, 
an  abused  work-tool  of  a  greater  party,  had  sworn  death  to  the 
hereditary  princes,  and  did  not  shrink,  as  a  means  of  achieving 
such  an  object,  to  offer  the  hand  even  to  the  old  enemy,  to 
France  itself.  They  would  dare  the  highest  extremes ;  and, 
allured  by  the  apparent  quietness  of  the  government,  the  assem- 
bly at  Hambach,  which  has  become  so  widely  celebrated,  was 
held  in  1833,  where  the  French  colours,  and  the  tri-colour  of 
the  Burschenschaft,  fluttered  from  the  same  staff.  There,  death 
to  the  princes  was  sworn,  and  within  a  short  time  revolutionary 
movements  broke  out  in  all  parts  of  Germany.  A  number  of 
the  academic  youth  plunged  themselves  into  misfortune  through 
the  attempt  at  Frankfort,  since  the  governments  now  found  it 
necessary  to  exercise  stringent  measures  with  all  their  power, 
and  all  partisans  of  such  demagogue  Verbindungs  were  quickly 
either  arrested,  or,  having  been  timely  warned,  fled. 


OF  STUDENT  LIFE.  433 

It  may  well  be  supposed  that  from  this  time  forward,  a  much 
stricter  eye  was  kept  upon  every  sort  of  Verbindung  of  the  stu- 
dents. No  Landsmannschaft  dare  lift  its  head,  and  the  aca- 
demical liberty  was  in  many  particulars  restricted.  Another 
injurious  effect  also  became  apparent.  Many  states,  more  par- 
ticularly Prussia  and  Russia,  forbade  their  subjects  to  frequent 
any  but  their  own  universities,  and  no  university  felt  the  loss 
occasioned  by  this  order  more  than  Heidelberg,  where  the 
attendance  of  Prussian  subjects  has  only  again  been  recently 
permitted. 

Yet,  after  all,  only  a  small  portion  of  the  student  youth,  suf- 
fered themselves  to  be  carried  away  by  these  imprudences  ;  and 
what  might  be  the  reacting  effect  of  these  lamentable  occur- 
rences, the  reflection  of  the  students  on  themselves  and  on  their 
calling,  on  what  became  them  and  was  for  their  real  advantage, 
further  strengthened  and  quickened  by  the  seriousness  with 
which  the  governments  pursued  the  guilty,  produced  in  them 
a  greater  exactness,  and  gave  thereby  a-  higher  moral  firmness 
to  the  academical  life,  so  that  far  from  being  represented  as  a 
sink  of  wickedness,  as  some  people  believe  it,  it  may  much 
more  justly  be  regarded  now  as  a  fruitful,  purified,  well-drained, 
and  well-sown  field.  The  channels,  constructed  to  lay  dry  the 
boggy  places,  are  cleared ;  the  unsound  spots  are  probed  and 
made  good  ;  and  if  the  watchful  superintendence  of  circumspect 
and  well-disposed  Boards,  and  the  professional  faithfulness  of 
the  majority  of  the  academical  teachers  continue  what  they 
are,  this  corn-field  of  our  future  will  yet  bear  continually  more 
beautiful  and  affluent  harvests. 


37 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 


A  PARTING  GLANCE  AT  OTHER  UNIVERSITIES  : 
GERMAN  AND  FOREIGN. 

WE  have  in  conclusion,  only  to  say  a  few  words  of  com- 
parison between  the  university  of  Heidelberg  and  the  other 
German  universities  ;  and  between  these  generally  and  those  of 
other  countries. 

In  the  description  of  a  German  university,  we  have  always 
had  that  of  Heidelberg  in  our  eye,  touching  only  occasionally 
one  or  another  of  the  other  German  universities.  The  insti- 
tutions of  these  are  essentially  alike,  yet  each  one  has  its  own 
peculiarities;  and  this  is  not  to  be  wondered  at,  when  one 
reflects  how  many  influences  determine  the  course  of  the  de- 
velopement  of  a  High-school.  It  shapes  itself  on  the  circum- 
stances of  the  times,  according  to  the  will  of  the  Princes  under 
whose  protection  it  stands;  according  to  surrounding  causes,  in 
respect  to  nature  and  art ;  and  more  than  all,  according  to  the 
spirit  and  character  of  the  teachers.  To  take  a  comparative 
review  of  these  peculiarities  of  the  other  universities  of  Germany 
would  be  highly  interesting ;  but  when  we  reflect  that  in  such 
a  course  all  alleged  influences  must  be  carefully  weighed ;  and, 
in  fact,  that  not  merely  the  present  but  all  the  past  fortunes  of 
the  High-schools  must  be  brought  under  the  eye,  it  will  at  once 
be  seen  that  so  wide  a  scope  of  observation  does  not  belong  to 
this  work.  We  can  as  little  go  into  the  narrative  of  the  foreign 
universities ;  because  personal  inspection  is  wanting  to  us,  and 


A  PARTING  GLANCE,  ETC.  435 

because  we  can  give  little  faith  to  the  statements  of  foreigners 
— statements  which  often  contradict  each  other,  and  for  the 
most  part  are  as  little  worthy  of  credence,  as  those  fabulous 
accounts  of  German  universities  which  have  been  circulated 
abroad.  The  last  few  years  have  brought  us  intelligence  of  the 
English  universities,  which  represents  them  as  the  nurseries  of 
all  that  is  mischievous  and  corrupt,  and  which  paints  them  in 
colours  as  repellant  as,  at  the  same  time,  have  been  daubed 
over  the  caricatures  of  German  universities  there.  The  false 
representations  which  foreigners,  who,  in  fact,  have  lived  for 
some  years  at  a  German  High-school,  have  made  of  the  dili- 
gence and  moral  condition  of  the  same,  warn  us  not  to  pro- 
nounce a  similar  opinion  on  academical  institutions  which  we 
have  not  seen  with  our  own  eyes.  We  will  only  here  devote  a 
few  lines  to  some  advantages  which  our  institutions  appear  to 
us  to  possess  over  those  of  England. 

The  great  wheel  of  the  mechanism  of  a  German  university 
is,  next  to  the  payment  for  the  lectures,  the  division  of  the 
teachers  into  ordinary  and  extraordinary  professors,  and  private 
teachers.  Through  the  income  appointed  by  the  government, 
the  professor  is  not  dependent  on  his  hearers,  and  is  not  tempted 
to  care  more  for  his  income  than  for  science.  The  first  duty  of 
a  professor  is  towards  science ;  not  towards  the  students.  That 
is  the  principle  of  all  genuine  university  professors ;  and  in  this 
exactly  differs  the  university  essentially  from  the  Gymnasium. 
The  state  must  secure  a  moderate  income  to  the  professor, 
independent  of  the  number  of  his  hearers;  since  a  lecture 
which  has  only  seven  or  eight  attendants  may  be  of  incalculable 
benefit  to  science ;  as  for  instance,  those  on  the  higher  analysis, 
or  the  higher  philology.  A  great  mathematician  ought  not,  in 
order  to  acquire  emolument  merely,  waste  his  time  in  teaching 
the  inferior  branches  of  his  science.  But  on  the  other  hand, 
the  state  is  not  bound  to  give  to  every  individual  a  scientific 
education  gratuitously,  and  to  its  own  ruin ;  and  it  would  be 
unjust  to  extract  money  from  the  pockets  of  all  citizens  for  the 
benefit  of  only  a  very  small  number.  A  suitable  and  secure 
income,  which  furnishes  a  professor  with  what  is  necessary  and 


436  A  PARTING  GLANCE 

with  leisure;  and  paid  lectures,  which  in  proportion  to  his  success 
shall  better  his  condition, — these,  in  this  respect,  constitute  the 
true  means ;  since  a  professor  should  never  forget  the  higher 
interests  of  science,  nor  in  the  brilliant  lustre  of  a  transcendent 
genius  content  himself  with  only  a  certain  degree  of  success, 
and  only  a  moderate  number  of  hearers.  There  is  also  this 
advantage  to  be  added,  that  the  students  frequent  with  more 
zeal  and  perseverance  the  lectures  for  which  they  pay. 

What  happens  in  these  respects  in  France  is  exactly  the  con- 
trary. In  the  French  faculties  of  language  and  science,  the 
doors  are  thrown  open,  and  every  man  can  enter  without  paying. 
This  at  the  first  view  appears  excellent,  and  worthy  of  a  great 
nation.  But  what  is  really  the  consequence  1  That  an  audience 
is  like  the  pit  of  a  theatre  ;  one  goes  in,  and  then  goes  out  again, 
in  the  midst  of  the  lecture ;  another  comes  once,  and  then  comes 
no  more  if  the  professor  does  not  tickle  his  ear.  The  attendants 
listen  with  distracted  attention,  and  in  general  you  see  more 
amateurs  than  students.  The  professor  who  does  not  lose  a 
sous,  let  him  do  his  work  as  ill  as  possible,  either  neglects  it,  and 
expends  little  trouble  or  talent  on  his  lectures,  or  loving  fame, 
anxious  for  his  reputation,  and  yet  despairing  to  win  a  serious 
audience,  labours  at  least  to  assemble  a  numerous  one.  In  this 
case  there  is  an  end  to  science ;  for  in  order  to  make  it  attrac- 
tive, he  must  sink  himself  to  the  level  of  his  hearers. 

There  lies  in  this"  great  number  of  attendants  an  almost  mag- 
netic influence,  which  bows  to  its  yoke  even  the  strongest  minds; 
and  he  who  would  be  an  earnest  and  admirable  professor  for 
attentive  students,  becomes  for  frivolous,  airy,  and  superficial 
hearers,  light  and  superficial  himself.  In  fine,  what  remains  to 
the  multitude  of  that  instruction  to  which  they  have  given  a  gra- 
tuitous attendance? — a  confused  impression,  just  about  as  profit- 
able as  that  which  an  interesting  drama  in  the  theatre  would 
have  left  behind. 

But  is  this  to  be  compared  for  a  moment  with  the  persevering 
zeal  of  fifty  or  a  hundred  hearers  even,  who  have  paid  before- 
hand for  the  lectures;  who  follow  their  progression  obstinately, 
in  order  to  sift  them,  and  to  give  themselves  an  account  of  them, 


AT  OTHER  UNIVERSITIES.  437 

without  which  they  have  thrown  away  both  their  time  and 
money.  Thus  excellent  is  the  arrangement  that  the  student 
shall  pay  something,  and  at  the  same  time  the  state  shall  gua- 
rantee to  the  distinguished  and  learned  men  who  are  chosen  as 
professors,  a  secure  and  fitting  support. 

The  three  degrees  of  teachers  at  the  High-schools  of  Ger- 
many are  in  the  happiest  manner  divided  from  each  other,  and 
yet  bound  together.  The  foundation,  the  root  of  the  professor- 
ship, the  inexhaustible  and  everspringing  nursery  of  the  German 
university,  are  the  young  doctors,  to  whom  it  is  allowed,  under 
certain  conditions,  and  with  the  permission  of  the  faculties,  to 
deliver  public  lectures.  Every  able  young  man  may  thus 
arrive  at  the  higher  offices  of  teaching,  but  none  without 
raising,  at  least  good  expectations.  He  is  tried,  but  without 
entering  into  any  actual  engagement  with  him ;  without  any 
thing  being  promised  to  him,  or  given  him.  If  he  does  not  by 
correspondent  results,  realize  the  hopes  which  have  been  enter- 
tained of  him ;  if  he  fails  to  attract  hearers,  and  to  do  honour  to 
the  faculty  which  admitted  him ;  it  is  seen  that  a  vain  anticipa- 
tion has  been  attached  to  him,  and  he  is  not  raised  to  the  rank 
of  extraordinary  professor.  He  himself,  after  some  years,  with- 
draws himself  from  the  hopeless  pursuit,  which  brings  him  few 
hearers  and  little  profit,  and  betakes  himself  to  some  other 
career.  On  the  contrary,  if  he  fulfil  the  hopes  raised  by  him ; 
if  he  gather  numerous  hearers,  and  write  works  which  excite 
attention;  he  is  then  declared  Extraordinary  professor,  a  title 
which  is  irrevocable,  and  which  gives  him  a  small  fixed  salary, 
which,  with  the  income  derived  from  his  hearers,  encourages 
him,  and  supports  him  in  his  career.  If  he  maintain  this  happy 
progress,  if  he  prove  himself  an  able  man,  the  stale,  in  order  to 
retain  him,  increases  by  degrees  his  income,  and  finally  names 
him  Ordinary  professor. 

This  distinguished  title  is  never  given  on  account  of  hopes 
which  may  be  found  false  by  experience,  but  on  account  of  tried 
effects,  of  distinguished  talents,  and  established  reputation.  It  is 
very  rare  that  this  title  is  received  before  a  certain  age;  and 
there  is  not  a  professor  in  Germany,  who  is  not  a  man  of  a 

37* 


438  A  PARTING  GLANCE 

reputation  more  or  less  distinguished,  since  this  position  is  entirely 
the  reward  of  his  talents.  Great  and  successful  results,  be  they 
in  writing  or  lecturing,  these  in  Germany  nominate  the  Ordinary 
professor,  and  an  unlimited  choice  is  afforded  in  the  multitude 
of  young  teachers.  Talent,  with  the  aid  of  time  and  perseve- 
rance, wins  the  prize,  and  that  is  the  genuine  and  proper  contest. 
As  age  and  time  dull  the  zeal  and  diminish  ability,  and  the  pro- 
fessor now  grown  old,  neglects  or  does  not  advance  with  the 
advances  of  science;  an  innovator  in  his  youth,  does  he  now 
become  a  loiterer,  what  is  to  be  done?  His  hearers,  ever 
attracted  by  the  spirit  of  the  time,  desert  his  lectures;  and  seek 
those  of  an  Extraordinary  professor,  or  perhaps  those  of  a  pri- 
vate teacher — young  and  zealous,  and  often  to  excess,  fond  of 
innovation  and  bold  inquiry;  and  the  university  suffers  not 
through  the  retreat  of  those,  who  formerly  served  it  faithfully 
and  well.  This  happy  mechanism  rests  on  the  distinction  into 
extraordinary  and  ordinary  professors,  and  private  teachers; 
which  in  France  correspond  with  the  titulaires,  adjoints,  and 
agreges. 

Let  us  now  only  reflect  how  different  altogether  is  the  prac- 
tice in  France.  A  man  is  put  in  the  list  of  competitors  for  a  few 
weeks,  amongst  such  young  people  as  frequently  have  not  writ- 
ten two  lines ;  have  taught  scarcely  a  single  year ;  and  now, 
after  giving  in  some  stated  proof,  are  often  in  their  twenty-fifth 
year  endowed  with  an  irrevocable  title,  which  may  be  held  till 
their  seventieth  year  without  doing  any  thing ;  which,  from  the 
first  day  of  their  nomination  to  the  end  of  their  life,  draws  the 
same  salary,  whether  they  have  many  hearers  or  few ;  whether 
they  distinguish  themselves  or  not;  whether  they  thenceforward 
live  in  ignorance,  or  become  celebrated  men  ! 

Another  great  disadvantage  in  France  is,  that  in  this  country 
the  different  faculties  of  which  a  German  university  is  com- 
posed, are  separated  from  each  other,  scattered  about,  and  in 
this  isolation  are  as  it  were,  lost.  Here  are  faculties  of  science, 
in  which  lectures  upon  chemistry,  physics,  and  natural  history, 
are  held,  without  a  medicinal  faculty  at  their  side,  which  might 
thence  derive  benefit ;  there — faculties  of  law,  and  of  theology, 


AT  OTHER  UNIVERSITIES.  439 

without  history,  literature,  and  philosophy.  So  are  there  per- 
haps twenty  miserable  faculties  scattered  over  the  whole  sur- 
face of  France,  and  nowhere  a  genuine  home  for  science. 
Thence  comes  it,  that  in  France  study  is  for  the  most  part  so 
unphilosophically  pursued ;  although  able  professional  men  are 
accomplished  in  jurisprudence  and  medicine,  the  studies  which 
are  there  the  most  in  esteem. 

We  leave  it  to  the  English  reader,  who  is  better  acquainted 
with  the  universities  of  his  native  land,  than  we  are — to  decide, 
how  far  the  deficiencies  here  attributed  to  the  French  universi- 
ties also  affect  those  of  Britain.  Oxford  and  Cambridge,  the 
two  most  ancient  universities  of  England,  have  remained  true 
to  the  old  institutions,  to  the  old  mode  of  living  altogether  in 
colleges,  which  the  German  public  has  long  abandoned  as  not 
answering  the  purpose.  They  have  a  greater  self-dependence 
and  independence  than  the  German  ones,  which  are  submitted 
to  the  superintendence  of  the  state.  Yet  the  German  institutions 
in  this  respect  reap  many  advantages,  so  long  as  the  govern- 
ment is  no  despotism.  Through  such  high-standing  Boards, 
boards  which  respect  the  interests  and  claims  of  all  parties,  and 
administer  to  them  all  justice  with  strict  impartiality,  the  chairs 
of  science  are  preserved  from  incapacity;  the  meritorious  are 
made  known  and  elevated ;  obstructions  are  removed ;  help  is 
duly  administered,  morals  are  protected,  defects  are  remedied, 
better  and  more  effectually  than  can  be  done  by  a  corporation 
alone,  and  without  such  a  well-disposed  and  wise  superinten- 
dence of  their  interests ;  and  which  places  the  university  in  a 
condition  to  exercise  a  fresher  and  more  unimpaired  strength 
in  the  great  pursuit  of  science  and  of  accomplishment,  and 
with  more  decisive  effect;  and  to  remain  mistress  of  the  great 
movement  of  inquiry  and  of  knowledge. 

That  the  advantages  of  the  German  High-schools  are,  how- 
ever, acknowledged  in  England,  is  proved  by  the  foundation  of 
the  liberal  University  in  London  in  the  year  1825,  wherein  they 
have  sought  to  combine  many  of  the  German  plans,  whose 
value  was  recognised,  with  the  old  English  ones.  But  yet  more 
than  by  this  fact,  is  paid  the  tribute  of  recognition  of  the  excel- 


440  A  PARTING  GLANCE,  ETC. 

lence  of  the  German  High-schools,  by  the  great  number  of 
young  men  who,  not  alone  from  the  European  countries,  but 
from  distant  regions  of  the  earth,  hasten  to  place  themselves  at 
the  feet  of  their  teachers. 

No  country  has  so  many  and  such  excellent  universities  as 
Germany, — and  the  proofs  of  their  advantages  exist  in  the  great 
number  of  illustrious  learned  men  and  authors,  which  quench 
their  thirst  of  knowledge  at  these  immortal  wells  of  science ; 
men,  whose  creations  daily  more  and  more  receive  abroad  their 
just  recognition,  and  in  no  country  more  than  in  England. 


THE 

GENERAL  BEER-COMMENT  OF  HEIDELBERG. 

Many  a  one  is  a  more  true  Diogenes,  not  when  he  is  in 
the  tub,  but  when  the  tub  is  in  him. 

TITULUS  I. 

DIVISION  OP  THE  STUDENTS  AS  IT  REGARDS  THE  BEER-COMMENT. 

§  1.  All  students  are  divided  into  Crass  Foxes  (or  Fat  Foxes), 
Brand  Foxes,  and  Beer-Burschen. 

2.  Every  student,  during  the  first  course  of  his  academical 
career,  is  a  Fat  Fox. 

3.  He  becomes  a  Brand-Fox  when  he  is  burnt  at  one  of  the 
regular  kneips  of  the  respective  Chores,  with  the  proper  solemni- 
ties ;  yet  this  shall  not  occur  before  the  Farewell  Commers  of 
his  first,  nor  later  than  four  weeks  after  the  entrance  Commers 
of  his  second,  semester. 

4.  The  Brand-Fox  becomes  a  Beer-Bursch,  if  he  be  pawked 
in  (initiated),  at  the  end  of  his  second  course,  but  after  the  Fare- 
well Commers,  or  at  the  commencement  of  his  third  course; 
this,  however,  shall  only  be  done  in  beer. 

5.  Comes  one  here  who  has  already  studied  two  semesters  at 
another  known  university,  he  must  at  the  commencement  of  his 
third  semester  be  here  pawked  in,  or  otherwise,  till  he  be  pawked 
in,  he  can  only,  as  it  regards  the  Beer-companies,  be  considered 
as  a  Brander. 


442  BEER-COMMENT 

6.  Every  one  who  has  studied  three  semesters  at  another 
known  university,  has  on  that  account  the  rights  of  a  Beer- 
bursch. 

7.  A  Fox  who  is  the  Chore-bursch  of  an  existing  verbindung 
or  union,  has  the  rights  of  a  Beer-bursch,  yet  must  he  suffer 
himself  to  be  pawked  in  as  a  Beer-bursch. 

8.  The  following  is  the  mode  of  pawking  in.     At  one  of  the 
appointed  kneips  of  the  respective  Chore,  the  in-pawking  Beer- 
bursch  drinks  to  the  in-to-be-pawked  at  least  half  a  choppin  of 
beer,  after  the  singing  of  every  strophe  of  a  song  then  sung,  and 
the  in-to-be-pawked  must  a  tempo  drink  as  much.     Moreover,  it 
is  well  understood  that  the  in-to-be-pawked  pays  for  the  beer  of 
the  in-pawker  which  is  thus  drunk. 


TITULUS  II. 

OP  THE  FORE  AND  AFTER  DRINKING. 

§  9.  From  the  Foxes,  whether  Crass  or  Brand  Foxes,  the 
Beer-bursch  is  not  bound  to  take  a  beer  challenge ;  yet  can  the 
Brand-fox  nachstiirzen  (that  is,  command  the  person  who  is 
going  to  drink  before  him,  to  drink  twice  the  quantity  that  he 
proposes).  Amongst  themselves  the  Foxes  have  equal  rights. 

10.  No  one  must  accept  a  challenge  of  less  than  half  a  chop- 
pin,  or  more  than  four  choppins  at  once.     The  graduated  quan- 
tities of  the  Comment,  are  a  half,  a  whole,  two,  three,  and  four 
choppins. 

11.  The  interval  between  the  fore  and  after  drinking  of  each 
agreed-upon  quantity  must  be  no  more  than  five  minutes  (that 
is,  the  accepter  must  drink  his  quantity  within  five  minutes  after 
the  challenger).     And  every  earlier  challenge  must  be  drunk 
before  the  latter  one. 

12.  If  four  choppins   are   agreed   upon,  so  must  the  fore- 
swearer  or  challenger,  drink  each  choppin  separately  within 


OF  HEIDELBERG.  443 

five  minutes  of  each  other ;  and  not  till  he  has  drunk  these  four 
choppins,  must  he  take  a  challenge  from  another  person.  Also, 
the  challenger  must  have  first  drunk  his  whole  contracted 
quantity  before  his  antagonist  is  bound  to  drink  his. 

13.  He  who  has  a  challenge  of  four  choppins  on  his  hands, 
is  not  bound  to  take  another  challenge  till  that  is  drunk  out. 

14.  If  a  challenge  is  made,  and  the  challenged  excuses  him- 
self on  the  plea  that  he  has  already  four  choppins  to  drink,  the 
challenger  is  justified  in  obliging  the  challenged  to  show  him 
each  of  those  four  allege  choppins  as  he  drinks  them. 

15.  If  a  challenge  is  given,  and  the  challenged  nachstiirz,  the 
quantity,  (that  is,  insists   that  it  shall    be  doubled,)  the  chal- 
lenger is  obliged  to  drink  the  doubled  quantity. 

16.  The  challenged  may  not  more  than  double  the  quantity 
proposed  by  the  challenger. 

17.  The  nachstiirz  become  invalid  the  moment  the  prescribed 
quantity  exceeds  two  choppins,  except  in  a  challenge  dfaire. 

18.  If  one  pauses  during  the  drinking,  leaves  a  Philistine  in 
the  glass,  (that  is,  if  he  leaves  the  bottom  of  the  glass  still  co- 
vered with  beer,)  it  is  to  be  considered  that  he  has  not  drunken 
his  quantity,  and  he  must  instantly  drink  another  in  the  proper 
manner. 

19.  The  case  is  the  same  when  an  umpire  declares  that  so 
much  beer  has  been  spilt  in  the  drinking  as  would  cover  the 
bottom  of  the  glass. 

20.  In  every  quantity  which  is  drunk  in  successive  portions, 
the  §§  18  and  19  shall  apply  to  the  party  whom  the  umpire  shall 
have  declared  to  have  drunken  informally. 

21.  As  well  in  the  fore  as  the  after  drinking,  the  antagonist 
can  select  an  umpire,  who,  if  he  judges  that  the  fore  or  after 
quantity  is  deficient,  must  see  that  it  is  made  complete,  and  that 
it  is  properly  drunken. 

22.  No  one  is  bound  to  accept  a  challenge  of  more  than  one 
choppin  at  a  time  out  of  a  vessel  which  will  hold  more ;  unless 
the  two  drinkers  agree  differently  between  themselves. 


444  BEER-COMMENT 


TITULTJS  III. 

OP  ANSCHISS-SAUFEN;  OR  DEFINING  OF  WHAT  ARE  PENAL  CASES  IN  DRINKING. 

§  23.  Foxes,  whether  Crass  or  Brand  Foxes,  may  neither 
touche  an  honourable  Beer-bursch  in  beer,  that  is,  challenge 
him  to  a  beer  contest ;  nor,  if  he  be  challenged  by  an  honour- 
able Beer-bursch,  may  he  nachstiirz,  or  double  the  quantity.  If 
one  of  them  does  this,  then  must  he  be  verdonnert,*  or  con- 
demned in  thunder,  to  pay  for  a  viertel,  that  is,  sixteen  choppins. 
The  Foxes  have  also  here  equal  rights  amongst  themselves. 

24.  The  degrees  of  the  beer  challenges  are  the  following : — 
A  LEARNED  MAN  stands  for  a  half-choppin ;  a  choppin  is  a 
DOCTOR  ;  two  choppins,  a  PROFESSOR  ;  three  choppins,  an  AMT- 
MANN  ;  four  choppins,  a  POPE. 

25.  If  any  one  has  given  his  cerevis,  that  is,  made  an  asser- 
tion on  his  beer-word  against  another,  and  it  cannot  be  proved 
who  has  given  his  cerevis  wrong,  so  must  the  two  drink  out  a 
Learned  Man — such  cases,  however,  excepted  as  are  before 
the  Beer-court. 

26.  No   one   is   bound  to  accept   ex  abrupto  more  than  a 
Learned  Man ;  yet  must  the  Foxes  accept,  ex  abrupto  every 
challenged  Doctor,  from  an  honourable  Beer-bursch. 

27.  The  provoker  to  a  beer-challenge  must  be  challenged 
within  five  minutes.     If  he  will  double  on  the  challenge,  he 
must  do  it  immediately,  and  according  to  the  fixed  gradations 
of  §24. 

The  settling  of  the  challenge  must  be  completed  within  five 
minutes  after  the  challenge  is  given ;  and  the  drink-duel  must 
be  immediately  contested,  if  the  challenged  has  not  yet  an  older 
scandalf  to  defend. 

*  Literally  be-thundered. 

t  The  cause  and  matter  of  the  challenge,  and  the  business  of  the  strife  itself  till 
decided. 


OF  HEIDELBERG.  445 

28.  Every  earlier  scandal  must  take  precedence  of  a  later. 
If  any  one  asserts  that  he  has  yet  an  earlier  scandal,  he  must 
name  the  person  with  whom  it  depends.     The  antagonist  has  a 
right  to  name  an  umpire,  who  must  take  care  that  the  scandal 
is  effaced  in  its  regular  order,  or  otherwise  the  umpire  must 
write  the  name  of  the  first  on  the  beer-table  with  the  penalty 
belonging  to  the  offence. 

29.  The  proceeding  in  fighting  out  a  scandal  is  as  follows: — 
Each  pawkant  or  combatant  appoints  a  second,  of  whom  the 
seconder  of  the  challenger,  on  his  cerevis,  makes  the  weapons 
equal.     If  the  weapons,  however,  appear  unequal  to  the  other 
second,  he  can  call  an  umpire,  who  decides  whether  they  are 
equal  or  not.     If  the  umpire  declares  that  the  weapons  are  not 
equal,  he  who  calls  the  umpire,  has,  after  the  scandal  is  fought 
out,  to  propose  the  proper  penalty  for  the  second  who  failed  to 
make  the  weapons  equal,  according  to  §  131,  No.  11  (a). 

30.  At  the  place  of  the  challenged  the  weapons  are  made 
equal,  and  the  beer-scandal  is  there  fought  out. 

3lT  If  the  weapons  are  equal,  the  second  of  the  challenged 
gives  the  following  commando,  "  Seize  it !  put  to  !  loose !" 

32.  Before  this  commando,  the  drinking  must  not  begin ;  and 
should  it  begin,  either  of  the  seconds  must  cry  halt,  and  the 
weapons  must  be  again  made  equal.    But  halt  cannot  be  cried 
after  the  word  "  loose"  is  given. 

33.  Both  parties  must  drink  instantly  on  the  command  being 
given,  whereupon   the  commanding  second,  after   both   have 
drunk,  first  declares  his  judgment,  and  then  the  other  second 
either  admits  this  judgment  or  not.     If  the  latter  be  the  case, 
so  the  seconds  themselves  must  drink  off  a  Learned  Man,  be 
the  quantity  what  it  may  for  which  they  stood  seconds,  except 
in  the  cases  stated  in  §§  34  and  35. 

34.  Drinks  not  one  of  the  two  combatants  on  the  given  com- 
mando, the  prescribed  quantity,  or  bleeds  he,  or  pauses  during 
the  drinking,  or  leaves  a  Philistine  in  the  glass ;  so  is  he  a  de- 
faulter, and  must,  within  five  minutes,  drink  once  more  the 
prescribed  quantity.     If  he  do  this  not,  he  is  put  under  the  beer- 

38 


446  BEER-COMMENT 

barm,  and  the  quantity  which  he  has  failed  to  drink  is  written 
on  the  beer-tablet  against  him. 

35.  He  is  equally  a  defaulter  if  he  breaks  his  glass  in  setting 
it  down,  or  overturns  it,  except,  in  the  last  case,  he  can  set  it 
up  again  before  his  antagonist  is  ready. 

36.  Every  one  must  second  the  moment  he  is  called  upon  to 
do  so ;  yet  if  one  second  be  a  Beer-bursch,  he  is  not  obliged  to 
accept  a  Fox  as  his  opposite  second.     If  any  one  refuses,  with- 
out a  sufficient  ground  of  excuse,  to  become  a  second,  he  is  to 
pay  the  penalty  of  a  viertel. 

37.  The  parties  concerned  in  a  beer-scandal,  must,  neither 
with  one  another,  nor  with  others,  engage  in  a  fresh  scandal, 
neither   can   others   engage   them   in   such.     But   should   this 
happen,  the  provoker  must   immediately  revoke,  or  be  con- 
demned to  a  viertel. 

38.  The  beer-scandal  arising  between  seconds,  as  in  §  33,  is 
to  be  fought  out  in  manner  following:  The  second  who  de- 
clared himself  first,  names  his  umpire,  before  whom  the  scandal 
is  to  be  fought  out,  and  through  whose  declaration  it  is  to  be 
concluded. 


TITULUS  IV. 


OF  ENGAGEMENT  A  FAIRE. 

§  39.  The  engagement  d,  faire  is  the  contract  between  two 
to  measure  themselves  in  beer  drinking. 

40.  Those  who  will  make  an  engagement  d,  faire,  must  let 
this  be  proclaimed  clearly  three  times  by  a  beer-honourable 
Beer-bursch ;  whereupon  all  who  are  already  concerned  with 
these  parties  in  a  beer-scandal,  may  state  their  claims,  so  that 
they  may  fight  out  their  scandals  with  them  before  this  new 
engagement  comes  on. 

41.  Both  combatants  must,  at  least,  empty  one  choppin  in 


OF  HEIDELBERG.  447 

every  five  minutes,  or  be  the  quantity  greater  they  must  still  do 
the  same. 

42.  Neither  of  these  combatants  may  accept  any  thing  from 
a  third,  nor  fore-drink  to  him ;  neither  may  they  provoke  to  a 
fresh  scandal  or  be  provoked  to  it.     Those  who  do,  fall  under 
the  penalty  of  a  viertel. 

43.  They  may  not  officiate  in  beer-affairs;  nor  be  seconds, 
witness,  nor  umpires;  nor  sit  in  the  Beer-comments,  nor  con- 
voke, or  cause  such  to  be  convoked;  they  may  not  aid  in  re- 
moving the  beer-bann,  or  drink  with  him  from  whom  it  is  to  be 
removed,  otherwise  they  are  condemned  to  a  viertel. 

44.  This  Beer-strife  is  ended  by  one  or  the  other  declaring 
that  he  can  drink  no  more,  but  not  by  agreement  to  drink  no 
more.     He  that  yields  must  quit  the  kneip  within  five  minutes, 
or  will  be  condemned  to  two  viertel.  Besides  this,  he  is  regarded 
as  under  the  bann  for  the  rest  of  the  day;  but  during  the  five 
minutes  that  he  stays,  he  is  not  obliged  to  accept  any  fresh 
challenge. 

45.  The  conclusion  of  the  Beer-strife  shall  in  the  same  man- 
ner as  its  commencement,  be  loudly  proclaimed  by  a  beer- 
honourable  Beer-bursch. 


TITULUS  V. 

OF  THE   DECLARATION. 

§  40.  If  any  one  has  no  desire  to  either  fore  or  after  drink,  or 
to  concern  himself  in  beer-suits,  he  must  cause  this  to  be  de- 
clared by  a  beer-honourable  Beer-bursch.  If  from  the  begin- 
ning he  drinks  no  beer  at  the  kneip,  he  need  not  declare  him- 
self. 

47.  He  who  receives  this  declaration  is  bound  to  proclaim  it 
aloud. 

48.  The  declared  may  not  be  challenged  in  beer.     Should 
this  happen,  the  challenger  must  instantly  revoke,  or  he  will  be 


448  BEER-COMMENT 

condemned  in  a  viertel.     If  the  declarer  challenges,  he  falls 
under  the  same  penalty. 

49.  If  any  one  has  already  drunken  beer  in  the  kneip,  and 
then  says,  without  having  declared  himself,  that  he  goes  away, 
he  must  not  accept  a  challenge.     But  if  he  remains  in  the  kneip 
five  minutes  after  this  declaration  of  going  away,  then  every 
one  can  fore-drink  him ;  and  in  so  far  as  he  does  not  after-drink 
according  to  the  regulations,  he  may  be  mulct. 

50.  Each  declaration  can  then  only  be  accepted,  when  the 
declarer  has  drunk  out  all  his  contracted  quantities,  and  all 
scandals  in  which  he  has  been  engaged  have  been  fought  out. 

51.  He  who  in  the  commencement  of  a  kneip  declares  that 
he  is  unwell,  is  for  the  evening  declared,  but  he  cannot  during 
that  evening  take  back  his  declaration. 

52.  If  a  declarer  appears  before  the  Beer-convention  as  a 
complainant,  he  must  bring  two  witnesses. 

53.  The  declaration  is  removed : — 

(1)  Through  fore  or  after  drinking  of  any  quantity,  even 
should  the  declarer  use  the  proviso,  "  without  prejudice  to 
my  declaration." 

(2)  By  making  a  counter  declaration. 

(3)  By  the  declarer  mixing  himself  in  beer-suits. 

54.  They  mix  themselves  in  beer-suits,  who — 

(1)  Demand  or  give  the  cerevis. 

(2)  Sit  in  a  Beer-convention ;  witness,  call  a  Beer-con- 
vention, or  cause  it  to  be  called. 

(3)  Is  an  umpire,  a  second  in  a  Beer-scandal,  or  drinks 
with  him  who  is  to  be  released  from  the  bann. 

(4)  Who  challenges  in  beer. 

(5)  Who  engages  himself  with  another  tifaire. 


OF  HEIDELBERG.  449 


TITULUS  VI. 

OF   THE   UMPIRES. 

i 

§  55.  A  beer-honourable  Beer-bursch  only  can  be  an  umpire. 

56.  Every  one  must  obey  the  call  to  be  an  umpire,  unless  he 
can  advance  some  available  excuse.     If,  without  being  able  to 
do  this,  he  declares,  he  must  be  mulct  in  a  viertel. 

57.  If  a  Fox  accepts  the  office  of  an  umpire,  he  falls  under 
the  penalty  of  a  viertel. 

58.  The  umpire  may  stand  with  none  of  the  parties  in  a  beer- 
scandal;  but  should  this  be  the  fact,  the  case  cannot  stand  over, 
but  another  umpire  must  be  called. 

59.  When  an  umpire  is  called  forth,  he  cannot  be  challenged 
of  apy  one :  the  offender  in  this  case  is  punishable  with  a  viertel. 

60.  If  any  one  holds  the  judgment  of  an  umpire  to  be  unjust, 
he  is  at  liberty  to  summon  him  before  a  Beer-convention ;  but 
this  must  be  done  before  the  quantity  which  has  been  made 
equal  by  the  umpire,  is  drunken. 

61.  The  umpire  can  always  be  called  before  the  Beer-conven- 
tion, on  account  of  his  decisions,  except  when  he  pronounces 
the  penalty  incurred  in  the  act  of  releasing  one  from  the  bann, 
or  upon  him  who  drinks  with  him ;  in  which  case  the  con- 
demned person  cannot  appeal  to  a  General  Beer-convention. 

62.  If  the  decision  of  the  umpire  is  declared  unjust  by  the 
Beer-convention,  he  goes  into  Beer-banishment;  but  if  that  be 
not  the  case  his  accuser  is  without  further  procedure  condemned 
to  Beer-banishment. 


38* 


450  BEER-COMMENT 


TITULUS  VII. 


OF  THE   BEER-CONVENTIONS, 
(a)  OF  THE  SPECIAL. 

§  63.  The  Beer-convention  is  that  competent  Board  which  is 
called  by  a  beer-honourable  Beer-bursch,  in  order  to  decide 
upon  a  fact  before  it,  of  a  nature  to  be  punished  by  a  beer- 
penalty,  or  on  other  beer-business.  It  consists  of  three  Beer- 
honourable  beer-burschen. 

64.  A  Fox  may  not  sit  in  a  Beer-convention ;  if  he  dares  to 
do  that,  he  is  to  be  be-thundered  in  a  viertel.     He  falls  under 
the  same  penalty  if  he  calls  a  Beer-convention. 

65.  So  soon  as  a  Beer-convention  is  called,  the  functionaries 
and  all  parties  concerned  must  neither  louche,  foreswear,  nor 
fore  nor  after  drink  so  long  as  the  business  lasts.     As  little  may 
this  be  done  by  another  person  towards  them.     Whoever  vio- 
lates this  rule  is  regarded  as  a  disturber  of  the  convention. 

66.  The  Beer-convention  being  called,  is  conducted  as  fol- 
lows.    The  beer-judge  summons  the  accused ;  the  accuser  then 
lays  the  case  before  the  court,  which  he  confirms  on  his  cerevis, 
which  the  convention  demands  from  him,  and  makes  his  peti- 
tion.   Hereupon  he  names  his  witness,  who  is  questioned  on  the 
alleged  fact,  and  his  cerevis  also  taken  upon  it. 

67.  The  accused  is  now  required  to  bring  forward  his  de- 
fence ;  whereupon  the  convention  also  demands  his  cerevis,  and 
his  witness  is  heard,  also  on  his  cerevis. 

68.  Accuser  and  accused,  as  well  as  every  one  of  the  judges, 
have  the  right  to  demand  that  the  witnesses  of  both  parties  state 
the  facts  upon  which  they  give  their  cerevis,  fully. 

69.  When  the  two  parties,  with  their  witnesses,  have  been 
heard  in  this  manner,  the  beer-judge  demands  whether  either 
party  has  yet  any  thing  further  to  advance.     If  this  is  not  the 


OF  HEIDELBERG.  451 

case,  the  minutes  are  closed,  and  the  judge  immediately  pro- 
nounces his  judgment 

70.  The  beer-judges  give  their  judgments  in  the  same  order 
of  succession  in  which  they  were  called  to  be  judges  by  the 
accuser.     The  last-voting  judge  must,  on  a  penalty  of  a  viertel, 
within  five  minutes  after  the  closing  of  the  minutes,  write  on 
the  beer-table  the  name  of  the  be-thundered,  or  appellant. 

71.  The  agreeing  judgments  of  two  beer-judges  constitute  a 
sentence,  with  the  exception  of  the  cases  in  §§  81  and  84. 

72.  No  beer-judge  is  allowed  to  state  publicly  the  grounds  of 
his  judgment,  when  he  gives  that  judgment. 

73.  No  beer-judge  may  give  his  vote  before  the  examination 
is  concluded,  and  the  minutes  closed.    If  he  fails  in  this  respect, 
either  of  the  parties  can  expel  him  from  the  Beer-convent.     In 
this  case,  the  accuser  has  to  call  another  judge.     The  same  is 
the  case  when  a  beer-judge  closes  the  minutes  before  the  exami- 
nation is  complete.     If  the  case  is  disputable,  the  party  who  has 
the  right  to  expel,  may  call  an  umpire,  who  shall  decide. 

7£  If  the  Beer-convention  has  cited  the  accused,  and  he 
omits  to  appear  and  make  his  defence,  he  is,  on  that  account, 
held  to  be  convicted. 

75.  No  one  can  refuse  to  be  a  beer-judge  because  he  would 
act  as  witness  to  the  accused ;  but  the  accused  can  object  to  a 
judge,  in  case  he  takes  the  office,  being  received  as  his  witness, 
but  this,  at  the  latest,  must  be  done  before  the  examination  of 
the  witness  of  the  accuser  had  been  heard,  upon  which  the 
accuser  must  choose  another  judge. 

76.  The  accuser  must  put  in  his  petition  before  his  witness  is 
heard.     A  petition  once  put  in,  cannot  be  changed.     If  the 
accuser  puts  in  a  false  one,  or  none  at  all,  the  case  will  be 
decided  in  favour  of  the  accused. 

77.  Every  accusation  must  be  confirmed  by  the  witness  or 
the  beer-tablet.     If  this  is  not  the  case,  the  accusation  is  nulli- 
fied, and  the  accuser  is  nonsuited. 

78.  If  the  assertions  of  both  parties  are  positive,  the  judge 
must  decide  in  favour  of  the  accused. 

79.  An  assertion  is  negatived  when  it  totally  contradicts  the 


452  BEER-COMMENT 

fact  of  the  opponent  without   supplying  another  fact,  which 
supersedes  the  first  fact. 

80.  Every  beer-honourable  student,  be  he  Fox  or  Beer-bursch, 
can  appear  as  witness  before  a  Beer-convention. 

81.  A  witness  becomes  amenable  to  punishment  by  giving 
false  evidence  on  his  cerevis.     Whether  he  has  given  a  false 
cerevis  remains  for  the  Beer-convent  to  decide,  before  which 
he  has  appeared  as  witness,  which,  without  further  proceeding, 
can  immediately  be-thunder  him  as  beer-banned,  and  mulct  in 
a  viertel ;  but  this  requires  that  all  the  Beer-judges  shall  be 
unanimous. 

82.  Each  party  may  only  call  three  witnesses  in  succession. 
If  none  of  these  speak  out  satisfactorily,  it  is  to  be  held  that  he 
has  no  witness.     For  the  rest,  neither  party  can  present  more 
than  one  sufficient  witness  in  support  of  its  assertion. 

83.  Such  witnesses  as  were  not  present  at  the  fact  on  which 
the  Beer-convention  has  to  decide,  are  held  as  false  witnesses. 

84.  Intruding  witnesses ;  that  is,  such  as  without  being  called 
by  name  as  witnesses  by  the  parties,  offer  themselves  as  wit- 
nesses, shall  not  be  accepted,  and  are  to  be  punished  with  the 
beer-bann.     The  judges  must,  however,  be  unanimous  on  this 
head. 

85.  A  beer-judge  having  once  given  his  vote  cannot  recall  it. 

86.  No  beer-judge  can,  during  the  proceedings,  speak  to  any 
of  the  parties  concerned,  out  of  the  regular  course  of  inquiry. 
He  who  does  this  is  punishable  with  a  viertel. 

87.  In  no  case  is  any  one  allowed  to  disturb  the  proceedings. 
He  who  does  this  for  a  fourth  time,  having  thrice  been  ordered 
to  be  quiet,  is  to  be  be-thundered  by  the  same  Beer-convention 
to  the  Beer-bann,  and  penalty  of  a  viertel  without  further  delay. 
The  beer-judges  must,  however,  be  unanimous. 

88.  When  a  punishable  fact  is  not  laid  before  a  Beer-conven- 
tion within  three  days,  it  cannot  be  laid  at  all,  unless  the  actual 
absence  of  accuser  or  accused   creates   sufficient  hindrance. 
But  a  cerevis  given  for  a  future  day,  or  which  requires  time  to 
prove  whether  it  may  not  be  false,  forms  an  exception.     Far- 
ther, a  cerevis  given  for  a  future  day  is  not  nullified  by  a  Beer- 


OF  HEIDELBERG.  453 

bann  falling  between  that  time  and  the  time  for  which  it  is 
given. 

89.  A  Beer-convention  may  only  be  postponed  three  days, 
and  only  then  when  the  witness  of  the  accused  is  absent. 

90.  Jf  one  is  accused  on  account  of  a  quantity  not  drunken 
at  the  right  time,  or  not  drunken  at  all,  the  said  quantity  is  to 
be  added  to  the  penalty  in  his  be-thundering. 

91.  If  a  quantity  has  been  fore-drunken  to  the  be-thundered, 
before  the  commencement  of  the  Beer-convention,  which  he  has 
not  after-drunken,  then  must  they  who  have  fore-drunken  this 
quantity  on  his  be-thundering  show  this  same  quantity  to  the 
Beer-convention,  corroborating  their  assertion  with  their  cerevis 
and  a  witness,  whereupon  also  this  must  be  added  to  his  Beer- 
penalty. 

92.  The  same  is  the  case  when  he  has  contracted  a  beer- 
scandal  with  any  one  before  the  Beer-convent  sate,  and  has  not 
fought  it  out :  but  the  latter  party  with  whom  he  has  made  this 
contract,  must  drink  the  prescribed  quantity  before  the  Beer- 
content. 

93.  Not  more  than  one  Beer-convent  can  be  called  over  one 
and  the  same  person  on  account  of  the  same  fact,  except  if  a 
Beer-convention  is  postponed  ;  or  a  Beer-convention  being  called, 
is  rendered  null  by  a  Fox,  or  one  under  Beer-bann  having  been 
called  upon  it,  and  in  it  having  sat. 

94.  A  Fox  may  neither  for  himself  nor  for  another  call  a 
Beer-convent,  but  he  must  procure  this  to  be  done  through  a 
beer-honourable  Beer-bursch.     The  last  can,  however,  call  him- 
self as  one,  in  case  other  «beer-honourable  Beer-burschen  are 
wanting  for  the  Beer-convention. 

95.  Only  one  Beer-convention  may  be  called  at  the  same  time 
in  the  same  kneip. 

(6)      OF   THE   GENERAL    BEER-CONTENTION. 

96.  The  general  Beer-convention,  which  must  consist  at  least 
of  five  Chore  Burschen,  is  the  highest  and  last  Court  of  Appeal ; 
and  therefore  its  decision  is  final  and  unalterable. 


454  BEER-COMMENT 

97.  Every  Saturday  evening,  at  an  hour  fixed  in  the  begin- 
ning of  each  course,  is  the  General  Beer-convention  held,  to 
which  every  Verbindung  then  existing  in  Heidelberg,  must  send 
a  Chore-bursch,  who  must,  however,  be  a  beer-honourable  Beer- 
bursch.     Should  less  than  five  Chores  exist,  the  S.  C.  must  take 
care  that  still  five  beer-judges  must  sit  in  the  General  Beer-con- 
vention. 

98.  These  judges  must  assemble  themselves,  at  the  appointed 
hour,  at  the  kneip  of  the  Secretary,  under  the  penalty  of  a 
quarter-crown  for  coming  late,  and  of  a  half-crown  for  not 
coming  at  all.     A  beer-judge  comes  late  when  he  is  not  present 
on  the  striking  of  the  fixed  hour. 

99.  In  case  that,  at  the  fixed  hour,  the  Beer-judges  of  all  the 
Verbindungs  are  not  present,  five  beer-judges  are  sufficient  to 
open  the  court  and  proceed  to  business. 

100.  When  the  required  number  of  beer-judges  are  present, 
the  Beer-convent  must  be  opened  with  the  stroke  of  the  appointed 
hour.     If  they  find  no  appellant,  they  must  wait  half-an-hour. 
If  no  one  appears  at  the  expiration  of  this  time,  the  judges  are 
authorized  to  withdraw. 

101.  If,  after  the  expiration  of  this  half-hour,  five  judges  agree 
to  wait  longer,  they  can  still  represent  the  General  Beer-con- 
vention ;  but  the  General  Convention  must  be  closed  at  the  end 
of  an  hour,  unless  instantly  occurring  and  pressing  business 
make  that  impossible. 

102.  It  is  free  to  the  accuser  as  to  the  accused  to  appeal  to 
the  General  Beer-convention,  against  a  sentence  of  the  Special 
Convention;  but  this  must  be  done^within  five  minutes  after  the 
declaration  of  the  sentence,  and  the  judges  concerned  must  be 
cited  at  the  same  time.  The  appeal  must  come  on  at  the  General 
Beer-convention,  at  the  fixed  place,  the  next  Saturday  evening. 

103.  If  the  appellant  exceeds  this  time,  without  being  able  to 
show  the  impossibility  of  then  proceeding  with  the  business  on 
which  the  Beer-convention  has  to  decide,  he  loses  the  right  to 
appeal,  and  moreover,  must  pay  a  viertel.     If  on  the  contrary, 
one  cited  to  appear  before  the  General  Beer-convention  is  pre- 
vented, he  can,  though  a  proxy,  bring  forward  his  excuse ; 


OF  HEIDELBERG.  455 

upon  the  acceptance  of  which  the  General  Beer-convention  is  to 
decide.  If  it  finds  the  excuse  satisfactory,  the  business  stands 
over  to  the  next  General  Beer-convention. 

104.  An  appeal  to  the  General  Beer-convention  can  indeed 
be  revoked,  but  this  must  be  done  within  five  minutes  after 
declaring  an  intention  to  appeal,  and,  in  fact,  before  a  Beer- 
convention  called  for  the  purpose.     If  it  be  revoked  later,  the 
revoker  must  pay  a  viertel. 

105.  He  is  excluded  from  the  right  to  appeal  to  a  General 
Beer-convent  who  has  been  declared  to  be  a  false  or  intruding 
witness  by  a  special  Beer-convention,  and  is,  on  that  account, 
be-thundered ;  and  so  is  he  also  who  has  more  than  three  times 
disturbed  the  proceedings  of  the  Special  Beer-convention. 

IOC.  The  proceedings  of  the  General  Beer-convention  in 
matters  laid  before  it,  is  the  same  as  that  of  the  Special  Beer- 
conventions,  with  the  following  exceptions.  If  the  parties  cited 
before  the  General  Beer-convention  do  not  appear,  nor  appoint 
proxies,  they  may,  after  the  accuser  has  made  his  complaint, 
and  corroborated  it  by  witnesses,  be  punished  for  contempt  of 
court. 

(1)  Moreover,  any  one  who  has  to  appear  before  the 
General  Beer-convention,  must  present  himself  before  the 
table  with  uncovered  head. 

(2)  No   beer-judge  of  the  General  Beer-convention  is 
bound  to  take  a  beer-challenge  from  any  one  while  he  sits 
in  the  General  Beer-convention. 

(3)  The  General  has  the  right  to  punish  with  the  punish- 
ment, for  the  disturbance  of  Beer-conventions,  prescribed 
by  the  Comment,  any  one  who,  during  one  and  the  same 
proceeding,   shall  have  broken  the  silence  enjoined  four 
times;  and  he  who  more  than  four  times  shall  have  broken 
the  same,  shall,  moreover,  be  reported  to  the  S.  C.  and  by 
it  be  fined  a  half-crown. 

107.  The  majority  of  voices  decides  here,  as  in  the  Special 
Beer-conventions.  Is  the  number  of  the  represented  Chores 
equal,  the  representative  of  the  Chore  to  which  the  secretary 
belongs  gives  the  casting  vote. 


456  BEER-COMMENT 

108.  No  appellant  can  lay  his  complaint  before  the  General, 
till  he  has  set  before  it  a  viertel ;  but,  in  case  he  carries  his 
charge  through,  he  has  the  right  to  name  one  of  the  condemned 
to  the  General,  who  shall  reimburse  him  this  viertel. 

Should  the  accused  be  be-thundered,  so  go  they  every  one 
into  Beer-banishment,  and  have  two  viertels  to  set  forth ;  but 
that  viertel  which  has  been  reimbursed  by  one  of  them  to  the 
accuser  is  reckoned  off. 

If  the  appellant  is  cast,  he  is  equally  condemned  to  two 
viertels.  But  as  he  has  already  set  one  viertel  before  the 
General,  he  is  only  written  down  on  the  beer-tablet  one  viertel. 
If  he  was  the  accuser  before  the  Special  Beer-convention,  the 
General  has  to  give  its  commission,  to  wipe  him  out  from  the 
beer-tablet,  and  to  write  him  down  as  chargeable  with  a  viertel 
under  its  order.  If  he  was  the  accused,  so  must  he,  according 
to  the  commission  of  the  General,  be  wiped  out  of  the  beer- 
tablet  with  the  B.  A.,  and  with  the  prescribed  penalty  of  the 
Special  Beer-convention,  together  with  the  new  viertel,  be  writ- 
ten down  on  the  beer-tablet,  under  the  order  of  the  General. 

The  appointed  penalties  are  written  down  in  the  Special 
Chore-kneip. 

109.  During  the  vacation,  the  number  of  five  beer-honourable 
Beer-burschen  are  authorized  to  represent  a  General  Beer-con- 
vention,  without   respect    to   Verbindungs.     Such   a   General 
Beer-convention  in  the  vacation,  must  be  called  within  eight 
days,  or,  otherwise,  if  no   sufficient  grounds   of  excuse   are 
brought  forward,  the  sentence  of  the  Special  Convention  remains 
in  full  force;  the  appellant  is  be-thundered,  and  the  right  to 
further  appeal  is  lost. 


OF  HEIDELBERG  457 


TITULUS  VIII. 

OF  THE   BEER  PENALTIES. 

I.    SIMPLE. 

(a)   OF  THE    BEER-BA.NN. 

110.  The  Beer-bann  is  that  punishment  by  which  the  beer- 
honourable  student,  while  he  is  be-thundered  to  four  choppins, 
loses  all  his  beer-rights  in  the  Special  Kneip  in  which  he  stands 
inscribed. 

111.  The  Beer-bann,  besides  the  loss  of  all  beer-rights,  has 
also  this  consequence,  that  the  be-thundered,  neither  mediately 
nor  immediately,  can  bring  his  beer  to  the  table  where  the  Beer- 
honourable  kneip.     Should  he  do  this,  every  beer-honourable 
is  at  liberty  to  throw  the  beer  of  the  be-thundered  upon  the 
ground. 

112.  The  beer-banned  appellant,  indeed,  equally  forfeits  all 
beer-rights,  yet  can  he  bring  his  beer  to  the  table  where  the 
beer-honourables  kneip,  and  he  may  not  be  called  a  beershisser, 
or  beer-banished-man,  and  can  for  and  after  drink  with  any 
beer-honourable  that  he  can  engage  to  do  so. 

113.  But  on   account  of  such  quantity  either  for  or  after 
drunken,  a  Beer-convention  cannot  be  called  by  either  party. 

114.  No  beer-honourable  is  allowed  to  either  fore  or  after 
drink  with  a  beer-banned  man ;  does  any  one  this,  he  goes  into 
beer-banishment. 

115.  A  beer-banished  man  can  never  be  called  before  a  Beer- 
convention  and  be  be-thundered  on  account  of  a  fact  which 
renders  him  liable  to  beer-banishment,  but  only  on  one  which 
renders  him  liable  to  pay  a  viertel.     He  then  renders  himself 

39 


458  BEER-COMMENT 

liable  to  a  viertel  when  he  calls  a  beer-honourable,  or  a  beer- 
banned  appellant,  a  beerschisser. 

116.  If  any  one  perpetrates  an  act  against  a  beerschisser, 
which  renders  him  liable  to  a  setting  forth  of  a  viertel,  the  beer- 
schisser can  call  this  person  before  the  Beer-convention,  but  he 
must  do  it  through  a  beer-honourable  Beer-bursch,  and  lay  his 
complaint  through  the  same,  strengthening  also  his  accusation 
by  two  beer-honourable  cerevises. 

117.  A  term  of  eight  days  is  appointed  to  the  beerschisser 
(the  beer-banned)  from  the  day  of  his  be-thundering,  during 
which  time  he  must  cause  himself  to  be  fought-out  in  the  follow- 
ing manner.     If  he  exceeds  this  term,  and  that  without  special 
grounds  of  excuse,  as  sickness  or  absence,  he  is  be-thundered 
in  two  viertels ;  which  penalty,  from  eight  days  to  eight  days, 
if  he  does  not  fight  himself  out,  is  doubled. 

118.  The  fighting  out  is  in  this  manner.     The  beerschisser, 
who  will  fight  himself  out,  requests  a  beer-honourable  Beer- 
bursch  to  call  his  name  out  in  the  kneip  on  whose  beer-tablet 
he  stands  inscribed ;  but  this  can  only  be  done  in  the  presence 
of  three  beer-honourable  Beer-burschen.     The  out-fighter  must 
at  every  one  of  the  four  chopping,  three  times  slowly  and  for- 
mally demand  who  will  drink  them  with  the  beerschisser.     The 
fighter-out  is  not  an  umpire.     If  any  one  is  not  satisfied  with 
the  proceedings  of  the   fighter-out,  this  last  must  name  an 
umpire. 

119.  The  beerschisser  must  from  five  minutes  to  five  minutes 
drink  each  of  the  choppins. 

120.  If  any  one  announces  that  he  will   drink   a   choppin 
with  the  beerschisser,  this  person  must  name  an  umpire,  who 
must  make  the  weapons  equal,  and  who,  as  in  a  Beer-scandal, 
has  to  command. 

Each  one  to  be  fought-out  has  at  least  two  choppins  to  drink- 

If  two  out  of  the  whole  four  choppins  are  not  yet  accepted* 

the  fighter-out  has  to  drink  out  the  remaining  quantity  with  the 

to-be-fought-out  person,  in  the  regular  time,  and  in  the  presence 

of  an  umpire. 

12 J.  He  who,  as  umpire,  has  commanded  during  the  last 


OF  HEIDELBERG.  459 

choppin  which  the  beerschisser,  as  such,  drinks,  must  imme- 
diately proclaim  him  three  times  loudly  and  formally  in  the 
kneip  as  beer-honourable. 

In  case  the  beerschisser  has  already  drunk  two  choppins,  and 
no  one  announces  himself  for  the  fourth,  the  fighter-out  has  this 
duty  to  perform. 

The  order  must,  at  the  same  time,  be  given,  and  where  it  is 
possible,  to  a  Fox,  to  wipe  the  beerschisser  from  the  beer-tablet. 

If  the  umpire  proclaims  the  out-to-be-fought  as  beer-honour- 
able too  early,  or  too  late,  he  himself  goes  into  beer-banishment. 

122.  Both  parties  must  drink  at  once,  on  the  word  of  com- 
mand.    If  the  beerschisser  does  this  not,  he  is  be-thundered  to  a 
viertel ;  if  the  other,  who,  according  to  the  declaration  of  the 
fighter-out,  has  to  drink  with  the  beerschisser,  drinks  not  at  the 
same  time,  he  goes  into  beer-banishment. 

123.  If  the  beerschisser  does  not  drink,  after  the  command  is 
given,  his  choppin  in  the  five  minutes,  he  continues  a  beer- 
schisser, and  the  choppin  not  drunken  by  him  is  written  on  the 
beer-tablet  in  addition. 

124.  In  all  these  cases  the  commanding  umpire  has  the  right 
to  pronounce  the  penalty  on  the  defaulters,  without  further  pro- 
ceeding, and  cause  them  to  be  written  on  the  beer-tablet,  nor 
can  he  for  this  be  called  to  account. 

125.  If  one  has  been  be-thundered  on  account  of  an  unper- 
formed quantity  of  fore  or  after  drinking,  he  must  drink  the 
quantity  still  due,  from  five  minutes  to  five  minutes,  after  he  has 
again  been  declared  beer-honourable. 

126.  This  must  be  done  before  those  whom  he  has  to  drink 
after;   or,  should  they  be  absent,  before  two  beer-honourable 
witnesses. 

127.  The  beerschisser  has  all  the  choppins  that  have  been 
drunken  with  him  during  the  fighting-out  by  the  out-fighters 
immediately  to  pay  for. 

128.  If  the  beerschisser  has  requested  any  one  to  call  on  him 
to  be  fought-out,  he  cannot  again  revoke  the  call ;  if  he  does 
this,  he  is  mulct  in  a  viertel. 


460  BEER-COMMENT 

129.  The  beersohisser  has  the  right,  during  the  pawking,  or 
fighting-out,  to  have  the  beer  necessary  for  the  out-pawking 
upon  the  table  at  which  the  beer-honourables  kneip. 

130.  Only  one  beerschisser  can  be  pawked-out  at  one  time. 

131.  He  goes  into  beer-banishment — 

(1)  Who  gives  a  false  cerevis. 

(2)  Who  offends  against  §  34. 

(3)  Who  permits  a  beer-touche,  or  provocation,  to  stand 
against  him  beyond  the  regular  time,  and  neither  chal- 
lenges, fixes  the  time,  nor  fights  out,  without  having  any 
sufficient  ground  of  excuse  to  give.     The  sufficient  grounds 
are — 

(a)  Older  scandals,  but  not  fore  or  after  drinking  quan- 
tities. 

(b)  If  he  has  received  no  beer,  spite  of  its  having  been 
immediately  ordered,  after  challenge  or  fixing  of  the  time 
has  taken  place. 

(4)  Who  has  declared  a  beerschisser,  either  by  word  or 
deed,  to  be  beer-honourable.     This  happens  through — 

(a)  He  who  contracts  a  scandal  or  fights  one  out  with  a 
beerschisser,  and  kneips  with  him  in  beer ;  that  is, 

(a)  He  who  fore  or  after  drinks  with  a  beerschisser. 

(§  H4). 

(b)  He  who  has  his  beer  standing  on  the  same  table  with 
that  of  a  beerschisser. 

(c)  He  who  plays  with  a  beerschisser  at  a  beer-play. 

(d)  He  who  with  the  beerschisser  pours  out  of  the  same 
vessel,  or  drinks  with  him  out  of  the  same  glass. 

(b)  He  who  "  catches  out"*  a  beerschisser  in  the  kneip, 
where  the  same  stands  inscribed  as  beerschisser  on  the 
beer-tablet. 

*  In  the  Kneip  they  drink  out  of  glasses  with  lids.  If  the  user  of  a  glass  as  he 
sits  so  far  lifts  up  the  lid  that  the  next  person  can  pass  two  fingers  under,  and  cries 
"abgefasst,"  "I've  caught  thee  out!"  the  person  is  said  to  be  "caught  out,"  and 
pays  a  penalty  in  beer.  To  avoid  this,  he  must  when  he  lifts  his  lid,  say  "  ohne 
abzufassen,"  "  without  being  liable  to  be  caught  out." 


OF  HEIDELBERG.  461 

(c)  He  who  calls  a  Beer-convention  upon  a  case  against 
a  beerschisser,  which  does  not  render  him  liable  to  a  penalty 
of  a  viertel.     (§11 5). 

(d)  He  who  submits  to  the  same  a  beer-case  for  deci- 
sion, or  calls  him  as  witness. 

(e)  He  who  too  early  proclaims  the  fought-out,  beer- 
honourable.     (§  121). 

(5)  He   who  too   late   declares  the  fought-out,   beer- 
honourable.     (§  121). 

(6)  He  who  calls  a  beer-honourable,  or  a  beer-banned- 
appellant,  a  beerschisser. 

(7)  He  who  does  not  set  out  the  appointed  quantity 
within  eight  days. 

(8)  He  who  in  pawking-out  a  beerschisser  commands 
on  a  bad  choppin. 

(9)  He  who  ought  to  drink  with  a  beerschisser  in  his 
out-fighting,  and  does  not  drink  at  the  right  time,  or  drink 
Qt  all. 

(10)  He  who  makes  a  quantity  common;  that  is,  fore  or 
after  drinks  a  quantity  with  a  third  person  also,  which  he 
ought  to  drink  with  one  only. 

(11)  The  umpire  whose  decision  before  a  Beer-conven- 
tion is  declared  to  be  unjust.     (§  62). 

(12)  The  second  who  has  to  make  the  weapons  equal, 
but  who,  according  to  the  decision  of  a  called-up  umpire, 
has  unjustly  declared  them  to  be  equal. 

(/)  He  who  declares  the  decision  of  an  umpire  to  be 
unjust  without  being  able  to  show  that  it  is  so. 

(13)  Intruding  witness.     (§  62). 

(14)  He  who  does  not  call  a  Beer-convention  on  account 
of  a  fact  which  is  directed  against  himself,  and  which  is 
punishable  with  beer-banishment. 

(15)  He  who  does  not  within  five  minutes  drink  the 
quantity  dictated  to  him  by  the  President  of  the  Beer-con- 
vention.    (§  146). 

39* 


462  BEER-COMMENT 


(B.)   OF  SETTING  FORTH  BEER. 

§  132.  Every  viertel  to  be  set  out  (that  is,  four  measures,  four 
jugs,  or  five  bottles)  is  written  down  on  the  beer-tablet,  and 
must  within  eight  days,  be  set  before  a  Beer-convention.  He 
who  exceeds  this  term,  goes  into  beer-banishment.  The  Beer- 
convention  which  has  be-thundered  him,  has  at  the  same  time 
to  give  the  order  that  he  and  this  quantity  be  wiped  off  the  beer- 
tablet,  and  that  he  be  written  down  anew  under  this  date. 

133.  The   Beer-convention,  and  he  who  sets  it  out,  have 
equally  participation  in  this  beer,  and  should  the  setter-out  be  a 
Fox,  he  too,  who  called  the  Beer-convention  for  him ;  but  the 
Beer-convention  can,  if  it  please,  make  this  quantity  over  to  the 
General  company. 

134.  A  viertel  must  set-out — 

(1)  The  Fox  who  touches,  or  provokes  a  beer-bursch  to 
a  challenge   in   beer,  or  in   a  beer-challenge  doubles  on 
him.     (§  23.) 

(2)  The  Fox  who  has  called  a  Beer-convention,  or  sits 
in  one.     (§  64.) 

(3)  The  Fox  who  becomes  an  Umpire.     (§  64.) 

(4)  The  Fox  who  touches  the  beer-cudgel  of  the  Presi- 
dent in  a  Beer-commers. 

(5)  Every  one  who,  being  called  on  to  second,  refuses 
without  sufficient  ground.     (§  36.) 

(6)  He  who  offends  against  §  37. 

(7)  He  who  offends  against  §§  42  and  43. 

(8)  He  who  touches  in  beer  a  Declarer,  and  does  not 
immediately  revoke  the  touche.     (§  48.) 

(9)  A  Declarer  who  touches  another  who  has  not  de- 
clared.    (§  48.) 

(10)  He  who  refuses  without  justifiable  ground  to  act  as 
umpire.     (§  48.) 


OF  HEIDELBERG.  463 

(11)  He  who  cribs  beer  in  drinking,  or  spills  the  beer  of 
another,  or  fouls  it. 

(12)  He  who  forgets  his  Smollis.* 

(13)  He  who  touches  an  Umpire,  knowing  him  to  be 
such. 

(14)  He  who  insults  or  calumniates  a  Beer-convention. 

(15)  He  who  declares  the  decision  of  a  Beer-convention 
to  be  unjust;  but  this  shall  not  include  the  appeal  to  a 
General. 

(16)  The  Beer-judge  who  offends  against  §  34. 

(17)  He  who  declares  that  he  will  appeal  to  a  General, 
and  yet  does  it  not  on  the  proper  day.     (§  103.) 

(18)  He  who  has  declared  that  he  would  appeal  to  a 
General,  but  makes  this  later  than  five  minutes  after  his 
declaration.     (§  104.) 

(19)  The  beerschisser  who  sits  in  Beer-convention,  or  at 
all  acts  in  beer-suits. 

(20)  The  beerschisser  who,  after  he  has  allowed  himself 
to  be  called  upon  to  be  fought-out,  revokes.     (§  128.) 

(21)  The  beerschisser  who  in  the  fighting-out  does  not 
drink  in  time.     (§  122.) 

(22)  The  beerschisser,  who  calls  a  beer-honourable  or 
beer-banned- Appellant  a  Beerschisser.     (§  115.) 

(23)  He  who  alters  or  writes  down  any  thing  on  the 
beer-tablet,  or  expunges  any  thing,  without  the  right  to  do 
it.     (§  136.) 

(24)  He  who  writes  down,  by  his  own  fault,  the  name 
of  the  be-thundered,  or  of  the  accuser-appellant,  wrong. 
(§  139.) 

(25)  The  be-thundered  or  accuser-appellant  who  pur- 
posely spells  his  name  wrong  to  the  writer-down.    (§  139.) 

(26)  He  who,  indeed,  writes  down  the  name  of  the  be- 
thundered,  or  of  the  accuser-appellant  on  the  tablet  correct- 
ly, but  who  states  a  false  date  or  a  false  quantity. 

*  His  agreement  with  another  to  thee  and  thou,  and,  forgetting  it,  addresses 
him  as  you. 


464  BEEItCOMMENT 

(27)  He  who  does  not  convey  the  commission  of  writing 
down  or  expunging  within  five  minutes. 

(28)  Every  one  whose  duty  it  is  to  write  down  or  ex- 
punge from  the  tablet,  and  does  not  do  this  within  five 
minutes. 

(29)  He  who  gives  to  another  without  due  authority,  an 
order  to  alter,  or  to  write  down  upon,  or  to  expunge  any 
thing  from  the  tablet.     (§  138.) 

(30)  He  who  does  not  call  a  Beer-convent  upon  a  fact 
which  renders  liable  to  the  setting-forth  of  a  viertel. 

(31)  When  one  is  caught-out — that  is,  if  he  lifts  the  lid 
of  a  covered  glass  (and  jugs  and  bottles  are  also  includ- 
ed) in  which  so  much  beer  yet  remains  as  will  cover  the 
bottom,  so  far  that  another  can  insinuate  his  hand  between 
the  vessel  and  the  lid,  and  thereupon  cry  "  caught-out ;"  or 
when  one  is  caught-out  who  covers  an  empty  glass,  though 
this  latter  person  is  under  no  necessity  to  cover  the  empty 
glass  again. 

(32)  He  who  catches  out  without  cause — that  is,  he  who 
catches  one  out,  who  in  the  lifting  of  his  lid  has  said — 
"  without  catching-out ;"  or  who,  while  the  beer  is  pouring 
puts  his  hand  between ;  or  who  makes  an  erroneous  catch- 
ing-out with  an  empty  glass.      *, 

(33)  He  who  speaks  ill  of  any  of  the  Faculties. 


II.    SHARPER  BEER  PENALTIES. 

§  135.  The  sharper  beer-penalty  is,  when  any  one  is  be-thun- 
dered  at  the  same  time  to  more  than  one  viertel,  or  to  beer- 
banishment  and  beer-setting-forth. 


OF  HEIDELBERG.  455 


(fl)  HE  IS  CONDEMNED  TO  MOKE  THAN  ONE  VIERTEL, 

(1)  Who  offends  against  §  44. 

(2)  The  accuser  who,  going  before  the  General,  fails  to 
make  good  his  accusation,  and  is  mulct  in  two  viertels. 
(§  108). 

(3)  The  Beerschisser,  who  does  not  cause  himself  to  be 
fought-out  within  the  proper  period,  falls  under  the  penalty 
of§  117. 


(6)   THEY  ARE  CONDEMNED  TO  BEER-BANISHMENT  AND  BEER  SETTING-FORTH : 

(1)  False  witnesses.     (§  81.) 

(2)  Those  who  disturb  the  proceedings  of  the  Beer- 
convention  for  the  fourth  time,  either  by  speaking,  crying 
out,  singing,  or  whispering  to  one  another,  after  silence 
has  been  three  times  commanded.     (§§  87  and  106.) 

(3)  All  those  who  act  contrary  to  §  65. 


(c)    THEY   ARE    CONDEMNED    TO  THE    SETTING   OUT  OF  TWO  VIERTELS   AND    TO    BEER- 
BANISHMENT. 

(1)  The  Beer-judges  whom  the  General  Beer-convention 
reproves. 

(2)  He  who  abuses  this  Beer-comment,  or  alters  any 
thing  in  it. 


BEER-COMMENT 


TITULUS  IX. 


OF  THE  BEER-TABLET. 


§  136.  In  every  special  kneip  a  Beer-tablet  is  to  be  hung  up ; 
upon  which  the  names  of  Beerschisser,  Viertel-out-setters,  and 
Accuser-appellants  are  written,  under  different  rubrics,  with 
addition  of  their  respective  dates  and  quantities. 

137.  No  one  may  write  any  thing  upon  the  Beer-tablet,  alter, 
or  expunge  any  thing,  who  has  not  received  a  commission  to 
that  purpose,  from  a  beer-judge,  an  umpire,  a  president  of  a 
beer-commers,  or  from  one  who  has  declared  the  Beerschisser 
to  be  Beer-honourable. 

138.  He  who  has  received  the  commission  for  expunging  or 
writing  down,  must  do  this  within  five  minutes :  otherwise  he  is 
be-thundered  in  a  viertel.    He  who  gives  an  unauthorized  com- 
mission falls  under  the  same  penalty.     But  in  this  case,  he  who 
has  received  the  commission  to  write  down  or  expunge,  is  not 
punishable. 

139.  If  any  one  has  received  a  commission  to  write  down  a 
be-thundered  in  the  Beer-tajblet ;  but  the  be-thundered  declares 
that  he  shall  appeal  to  the  general  Beer-convention,  the  writer- 
down  must  note  this  by  the  addition  of  the  two  letters  B.  A. 
under  the  name  of  the  be-thundered.     So  also  the  writer-down 
must  place  in  the  proper  rubric  him  who  has  proceeded  as 
accuser  before  a  special  Beer-convention,  and  declare  that  he 
will  appeal  to  a  General  one. 

140.  Every  one  who  has  received  a  commission  to  write  any 
one  down  in  the  Beer-tablet,  has  a  right  to  ask  the  same  how 
he  writes  his  name,  whereupon  that  person  must  clearly  spell  it 
out  to  him.     If  the  commissioner  does  not  ask  the  name  of  the 
to-be-written-down,  or  has  this  person  spelt  his  name  out  rightly 


OF  HEIDELBERG.  467 

to  him,  and  he  yet,  in  both  cases,  write  it  down  wrong,  he  is 
thereupon  be-thundered  in  a  viertel,  without  in  this  case  the  one 
to-be-written-down  being  freed  from  his  penalty.  But  if  the 
to-be-written-down  gives  him  his  name  wrong,  then  he  falls 
under  the  penalty. 

141.  He  who  has  written  down  any  one  with  authority  on 
the  Beer-tablet,  and  has  written  him  down  wrong,  is  to  be 
called  before  a  future  Special  Beer-convention.  This  Beer- 
convention  has  to  take  care  that  the  fault  of  him  who  received 
the  commission  be  amended. 

[The  remainder  of  this  Beer-Comment  is  given  in  the  chapter 
describing  a  Commers.] 


THE  END. 


. 


UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  U8HARY  FACILITY 


A     000  692  994     7 


mimm 

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